China to begin construction of several clean-energy projects

BEIJING, CHINA - China is set to begin construction on several energy infrastructure projects by the end of the year, the National Development and Reform Commission recently announced.

The projects are expected to include nuclear power stations, natural gas pipelines, coal mines, refineries, power grids, oil reserves, hydropower, direct-current transmission and others.

The projects are in line with China's recent move to deal with the financial crisis by implementing a proactive fiscal policy and a relatively loose financial policy while increasing infrastructure construction and adjusting the energy mix. Some examples of projects are:

• Ten 1,000-megawatt nuclear power stations in Fuqing, Fujian province; Fangjiashan, Zhejiang province; and Yangjiang, Guangdong province;

• A hydropower project in Liyang, Jiangsu province;

• An 800-kilovolt direct-current transmission project connecting Jinping, Sichuan province, to the southern part of Jiangsu;

• A 12 million-ton coal mine in Shenmu Honliulin, Shaanxi province;

• A refinery in Chengdu, Sichuan, with a capacity of about 210,000 barrels per day.

A west-to-east gas-transportation project is also expected to begin construction by the end of the year. The project will involve building Line II, which will transport gas from Ningxia, Gansu province, to Shenzhen, Guangdong, and then finally to Hong Kong. The project includes a main artery line and six branch lines that will transport gas to Tai'an, Shandong province; Xiangtan, Hunan province; Shanghai; Nanning, Guangxi province; and Shiyan, Hubei province; as well as connect Shenzhen to Hong Kong.

China's government is also set to invest about $581 million in power grids in the country's rural and urban areas. China has also completed a master plan for an oil reserve project of a capacity of 26.8 million cubic meters.