An official from the Provincial planning and development committee said on Wednesday that the project, as China's first imported LNG project and the country's largest-scale city gas project, will cost total a investment of over 30 billion yuan (US$3.6 billion).

According to the plan, the first phase project will be put into operation in 2005, covering four cities in Guangdong, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan and Dongguan. The project is expected to cover the Hong Kong area and the whole Pearl River region when the second phase of the project is completed in 2010.

The official also disclosed that businesspeople from Australia, the United States and Russia have expressed their willingness to participate in public bidding for the first-phase project.

Those who win the bid will provide 3 million tons of liquefied gas annually to the Guangdong LNG reception terminal from 2005.

Economists hold that as China's only trial project in this field, the smooth operation of LNG will supply valuable experience for the country's other regions.

Natural gas consumption only covers two percent of China's energy resources structure. The government aims to improve the natural gas ratio to 7 percent of the country's energy resources structure by the year 2010.

(Xinhua 08/30/2001)