Mongolia Pushes Russia, China to Re-Route Planned Gas Line

Mongolia is calling upon China and Russia to re-direct a planned natural-gas pipeline across its territory as the world's fastest growing economy seeks to tap the cleaner-burning fuel.

Altering the route to pass through Mongolia would save 1,000 kilometers (622 miles) of pipeline, Mongolian President Tsakhia Elbegdorj said in an interview in Ulan Bator, the nation's capital. It would also allow Mongolia to switch to gas heating in the capital, which ranks among the world's most polluted cities due to widespread use of coal-fired stoves.

"This is economically beneficial," Elbegdorj said. "We are trying to persuade our two neighbors not to exclude us from that project. The Chinese side has already agreed to discuss this and also the Russian side."

Russia has discussed a gas pipeline to China, the world's biggest energy user, for almost a decade without reaching a final agreement. Mongolia, squeezed between Russia and China, is struggling to end power shortages that threaten to hold back the development of the country's resources industry, which helped its economy grow 17.3 percent last year.