China Knowledge reported that PetroChina the country's largest oil producer plans to start construction on a 1,024 kilometer natural gas pipeline project worth CNY 8 billion in Shandong Province next month.

The large gas delivery pipeline, which will cross eight cites in Shandong, will go from Taian to Rizhao by way of Laiwu, Zibo, Weifang, Qingdao, Tantai and Weihai. If the project is approved, it is expected to be completed in 2010.

Reportedly, PetroChina has already received approval to build a gas pipeline project costing CNY 510 million from Linfen to Rizhao, Shandong Province. The predicted supply capacity is 445 million cubic meters a year.

On June 3rd a Shandong branch of Sinopec signed a contract with a local firm in Rizhao, Shandong Province to build a gas pipeline costing CNY 580 million from Jiaozhou to Rizhao. The transportation project is estimated to supply 50,000 cubic meters of natural gas a day to Rizhao.

Mr Guo Xiaodong deputy director general of the energy and transportation department of Shandong Province said that the length of the gas pipeline in Shandong Province totaled 3,000 kilometers as of April 30th.

In 2010, Shandong's gas consumption will reach an estimated 5 billion cubic meters and will hit an estimated 15 billion cubic meters in 2020.

(Sourced from China Knowledge)