China will spend 120 billion yuan to build a second railway traversing the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, according to information from a meeting of the Xinjiang committee of the Communist Party of China.

Construction is expected to begin next year, with investment from the central and local governments and other sources.

The passenger line will go through Gansu, Qinghai and Xinjiang. It will facilitate the transport of agricultural products and minerals, mainly coal, out of Xinjiang, by relieving congestion on the existing line.

When the line is completed, the existing 1,892-km line from Lanzhou (Gansu's capital) to Xinjiang will be used for cargo only.

Nuke plant construction

Construction started on November 21 of a 100-billion-yuan nuclear power plant in Fujian province, which will help to improve the power supply situation across eastern China.

Located in Fuqing, a coastal city to the south of Fuzhou, the plant is designed to have six reactors, each with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), the project's builder and operator, said.

The first two reactors will become operational in 2013 and 2014, it said.

China's top economic planning body, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said earlier this month that construction of a series of large energy projects was due to start this year.

New mine coal

An exploration team of the Hunan Provincial Coal Mine Geology Administration says a large coal mine area with a reserve of 70 million tons of coal has been found in Shaoyang, Hunan province. This mine is the largest among the coal mines found in Hunan in the past 10 years.

Shanghai unemployment

Shanghai enterprises and trade unions are working to limit unemployment following the central government's call for domestic firms to nurture confidence in the face of the global financial crisis.

More than 200 local enterprises, mostly technology and manufacturing companies, promised recently not to lay off employees during the crisis but instead invest more in training and technological innovation.

The move, initiated by the Shanghai Minhang district federation of trade unions, is designed to help local enterprises cope with the global economic turmoil and maintain stable social and economic development.

Sun Yaohui, vice-president of the trade union, says: "So far the government has introduced a series of measures to boost confidence among enterprises."

Shanxi cuts coal output

Shanxi province, the nation's largest coal-producing area, will cut coal output to support the price of the fuel, the China Securities Journal said, citing the provincial government.

Coal demand and prices in Shanxi have fallen since September as the economy has slowed, the newspaper reported, citing the Shanxi Province State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.

Coal sales in Shanxi and to other provinces dropped 13 percent and 5 percent respectively in October from September, it said.

Guangdong industrial boost

Guangdong province plans to focus on industrial reform in the cities of Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Zhuhai, Shantou and Zhanjiang. Shenzhen will focus on building its financial and technology industries and Guangzhou on improving government transparency, the South China Morning Post said, citing provincial Party Secretary Wang Yang.

Zhuhai will focus on high-tech and environmentally friendly industries, Shantou on developing its logistics sector and carrying out land reforms, and Zhanjiang will look to build its steel industry, the newspaper said.

China-Myanmar pipeline

Construction of an oil and gas pipeline linking Myanmar and China's Yunnan province is expected to start next year, says an official with the local government.

In line with the policy to boost domestic demand, Yunnan will start building the pipeline in the first half of 2009, said Mi Gongsheng, director of the Yunnan Provincial Development and Reform Commission.

The project is one of a series of large energy and infrastructure projects Yunnan will embark on in2009, Mi told Xinhua News Agency. These projects are focused on six areas: large-scale industrial projects, railway construction, cleaning up Dianchi lake, power and coal projects, construction, power grid upgrades and rural road construction.

Yunnan province plans to invest 72 billion yuan in energy projects next year, said Mi.

New railway lines for Beijing

Beijing plans to build 100-km of railway lines by 2010, with an accumulated investment of 90 billion yuan and total lines reaching 300 km.

Currently, seven lines are under construction and the number will go up to 13 in 2009, said Wu Hongjian, general manager of the Beijing Railway Construction and Management Co.

The local subway will reach 561 km by 2015, occupying more than 50 percent of the total capacity of pubic transportation, said Zhou Zhengyu, deputy head of the municipal committee of communications.

(China Daily 12/01/2008 page10)