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Construction of the eastern section of the Second West-East Gas Pipeline Project commenced; China’s policies to boost domestic demand and sustain economic growth are being implemented once again. Xinhua News Agency, Shenzhen, February 7 (Reporters An Bei, Peng Yong) – The construction of the eastern section of the Second West-East Gas Pipeline Project was officially launched on the 7th in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. As a key project launched in China amid the global impact of the financial crisis and a slowdown in domestic economic growth, this project underscores China’s efforts to boost domestic demand, sustain economic growth, adjust the economic structure, and improve people’s living standards. It is of great significance for China to improve its energy consumption structure and enhance its energy supply capacity. The West-East Gas Pipeline Project II is China’s first large-scale pipeline project to import natural gas resources from abroad. It starts at the Horgos port in Xinjiang and connects, to the west, with the Central Asia Gas Pipeline that is currently under construction and runs through Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan ； It extends south to **, east to Shanghai, passing through 14 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, and the **Special Administrative Region. It is constructed and operated by China National Petroleum Corporation. Among them, the eastern section of the West-East Gas Pipeline Project II runs from Zhongwei in Ningxia, passing through 11 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, to Guangzhou and **. · ·· · · ·· · · Liao Yongyuan, vice president of CNPC, said that the Central Asia gas project and the West-East Gas Pipeline Project II are major initiatives under China’s 11th Five-Year Plan, with a total investment of around 250 billion yuan. The main source of gas is natural gas from Turkmenistan, with supplementary sources coming from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Natural gas from China’s Tarim and Changqing gas fields serves as a backup source for emergency situations and security purposes. According to the relevant agreements, the amount of Central Asian natural gas available for China amounts to 45 to 50 billion cubic meters per year. Liao Yongyuan said that the Central Asia gas pipeline line and the western section of the West-East Gas Transmission Project II are scheduled to be completed and put into operation by the end of 2009, at which time natural gas from Central Asia will flow into China. In 2011, the entire Second West-East Gas Pipeline was completed, and in 2012 the gas transmission volume reached 30 billion cubic meters per year. **Zhou Dadi, a researcher at the Energy Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission, said that the West-East Gas Pipeline Project II helps ensure China’s energy security on a broader basis, providing clean and efficient energy supplies for the sustainable development of the economy and society. Zhou Dadi also pointed out that the commencement of the eastern section of the West-East Gas Pipeline Project II under the current economic conditions will play a positive role in boosting domestic demand. It is understood that the total investment in the eastern section of the West-East Gas Pipeline Project 2 is 93 billion yuan. Together with the western section of the project, which began construction in February 2008 and runs from Horgos Port in Xinjiang to Zhongwei in Ningxia, the total investment for the entire pipeline project amounts to 142.2 billion yuan. In addition to direct investment, project construction will also spur the development of related industries such as domestic machinery, electronics, metallurgy, building materials, construction, and natural gas utilization; it is estimated that the direct investment driven by this will exceed 300 billion yuan. The West-East Gas Pipeline Project II will also **improve the energy consumption structure of Chinese residents. Wu Hong, general manager of the Pipeline Construction Project Management Department of CNPC, said that the West-East Gas Pipeline Project Phase II will add 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas supply to China each year starting in 2012, which is equivalent to half of the country’s total natural gas supply in 2007, with a stable supply expected to last for 30 years. This will improve gas supply for 400 million people along the route, greatly facilitating the lives of residents in the 14 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities along it. Dong Xiucheng, deputy dean of the School of Business Administration at China University of Petroleum, said that as China’s economy and society develop, the demands on the environment are increasing. As a clean energy source, natural gas perfectly meets the needs of economic and social development. It was precisely such market demand that drove the launch of the West-to-East Gas Pipeline Project Phase II. Wu Hong said that once the entire Second West-East Gas Pipeline is in operation, natural gas’s share in China’s primary energy consumption will increase by 1 to 2 percentage points. Compared to coal, 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 130 million tons, sulfur dioxide emissions by 1.44 million tons, dust emissions by 660,000 tons, and nitrogen oxide emissions by 360,000 tons. It is understood that the construction of Central Asian natural gas projects and the Second West-East Gas Pipeline is progressing smoothly. By the end of January, a total of 18.5 billion yuan had been invested in the West-to-East Gas Pipeline Project Phase II, with approximately 1,800 kilometers of pipelines welded in the western section.