The China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline, the pipeline with the largest single-line gas transmission capacity in China, has been fully connected, the pipeline's operator announced Monday.

The pipeline has also achieved full capacity operation with an annual transmission volume of 38 billion cubic meters, according to China Oil & Gas Pipeline Network Corporation (PipeChina).

As a landmark project of China-Russia energy cooperation, the cross-border gas pipeline has a 3,000-km section in Russia and a 5,111-km stretch in China.

The pipeline's China section begins in Heihe, a city in the country's northeast bordering Russia, and transports natural gas from Siberia all the way south to Shanghai, China's economic and financial hub.

The full-route connection of the pipeline significantly enhances natural gas supply capacity and emergency peak-shaving capabilities in densely-populated eastern China. It also marks the completion of the country's eastern energy strategic corridor, said PipeChina.

Since the operation of the northern part of the China section in December 2019, the pipeline has transmitted over 80 billion cubic meters of natural gas, benefiting a population of about 450 million along its route.

The China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline is the third cross-border long-distance natural gas pipeline to supply gas to China, following the China-Central Asia and China-Myanmar oil and gas pipelines.