CONSTRUCTION OF a second gas pipeline connecting China’s western region with the more industrialized south and east of the country is under study. The new pipeline is likely to link the Tarim Basin in the west with Guangdong Province in the south, crossing Qinghai and Sichuan provinces. The first gas pipeline, linking Xinjiang with Shanghai, was completed in 2004.
Owned by PetroChina, the country's largest oil producer, the 4,000-km long pipeline was constructed with help from international oil firms including Royal Dutch/Shell, Gazprom, and ExxonMobil. However, as the country's gas consumption is now expected to reach 100-120bn cum/yr by 2010, with the figure likely to double by 2020, further pipeline gas-transportation capacity is urgently needed.