The ninth round of talks was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich and Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan.

Summing up the meeting's results, Mr Dvorkovich told journalists that by 2014, Russia can increase its electricity exports to China by 50%. "Currently, we are in the process of increasing our electricity exports to 2.6 billion kWh. Next year, we can further increase this volume to 3 billion kWh, and in two years – up to 4-4.5 billion kWh. But this will also depend on whether there is an appropriate demand in China," said Dvorkovich.

The Deputy Prime Minister also said that the Chinese side was presented with a draft intergovernmental agreement that outlines the details of the construction of the Tianjin refinery.

Addressing the issue of nuclear cooperation between the two countries, Mr Dvorkovich said that Russia and China are discussing the possibility of jointly building nuclear power plants in third countries. "We have a positive outlook on cooperation in the nuclear energy field and believe that it has enormous potential. China is interested in expanding this cooperation and, among other things, is proposing to jointly build nuclear plants in third countries. We are considering these proposals," said the Deputy Prime Minister.

He added that there are no concrete plans to build nuclear plants in any countries. "We are just discussing the possibility of launching this kind of cooperation, which is unprecedented, Mr Dvorkovich said. He also reported that the sides have signed a protocol at the meeting to build the second phase of the Tianwan nuclear plant, and the final agreement on the project will be signed in the near future.

"The construction will be launched this year in December and will pave the way for more broad-based cooperation and the start of consultations on the design and construction of new nuclear power plants," Mr Dvorkovich said. This includes current and new innovative projects such as fast neutron reactors, added the Deputy Prime Minister.

Russia is also interested in the participation of Chinese companies in major coal projects in consortia with their Russian counterparts, Mr Dvorkovich said. First and foremost, this concerns the Gerbikano-Ogodzhinsky coal deposit in the Amur region, which is of strategic significance. The tender for the deposit's development will be held next year, reported the Deputy Prime Minister, adding that the Chinese side has expressed interest in this and other coal projects in Russia.

Vice Premier Wang Qishan noted at the meeting that China is interested in enhancing the two countries' cooperation in the field of mining and oil refining. He said that projects involving oil and coal supplies to China are proceeding well, adding that cooperation plans in the gas sector are also of strategic significance for both countries and will help strengthen trust between them.