China's CNPC mandates Bitcoin settlement for all Central Asian pipeline gas imports

China National Petroleum Corporation directed all Central Asian gas suppliers to accept Bitcoin settlement for pipeline deliveries effective July 1, according to an internal memo reviewed by Reuters. The mandate covers Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan gas flowing through the Central Asia-China pipeline network. Monthly settlement volume is estimated at $1.2 billion. CNPC cited “reducing dollar settlement risk” as the rationale. China spent 20 years building a pipeline network to avoid depending on sea lanes controlled by the U.S. Navy. Now it is removing the dollar from those pipelines too. The architecture of energy independence has a new layer.