China building 3rd west-to-east gas pipeline  

西气东输三线工程正式开工 年供天然气300亿立方米

西气东输三线工程(以下简称“西三线”)开工仪式16日上午在北京举行。中国国家发改委主任张平在仪式上宣布，“西三线”即日起在北京、福建、新疆同时开工。

Beijing (CNS) -- Construction began Tuesday on China's third pipeline to transmit natural gas from the western to the eastern part of the country.

Zhang Ping, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, announced the launch during the project's commencement ceremony in Beijing.

The 7,378-kilometer pipeline will start in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and run through eight provinces, ending in Guangdong.

With a total investment of 125 billion yuan, it is expected to transmit 30 billion cubic meters of gas annually.

The pipeline will transmit natural gas from Central Asia and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to the Yangtze River delta and the southeast coast, Liao Yongyuan, vice president of PetroChina said, adding that the project will improve the pipe networks and help ease the tense situation of gas supply and demand.