Chinese sign up for Turkmen gas

President Saparmurat Niyazov's trips abroad are rare

Turkmenistan and China have agreed to build a pipeline to supply Turkmen natural gas for the energy-hungry Chinese economy.

Details of the deal, which was reached in Beijing during a rare visit by Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov, were not immediately available.

Turkmenistan's gas reserves are second only to Russia's in the ex-USSR.

Russia recently agreed to build gas pipelines to China and a Kazakh oil pipeline to China was opened last year.