China will build four major pipelines for oil and natural gas transport in the next five years, said a development blueprint submitted Sunday to the national legislature.

The trunk lines include two for petroleum transport, one from the west to the east and the other from north to south, said the draft plan of national economic and social development for the 2006-2010 period.

The country will also build a second west-east natural gas pipeline and a pipeline for oil and natural gas import into the country's inland areas, said the blueprint submitted for examination and approval by deputies to the National People's Congress (NPC).

China will develop its oil and natural gas transport network in the next five years to offset the energy disadvantage of some areas caused by imbalanced geographical distribution, the draft plan said.

The annual full session of the Chinese parliament opened in Beijing on Sunday morning, with the presence of more than 2900 deputies from all over the country.

(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2006)