The two giant energy corporations, State Grid Corp of China and China Southern Power Grid Co Ltd, are stepping up the expansion of the nationwide power grid, which will involve a total investment of more than one trillion yuan (US$131.5 billion) during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010).

The expansion of the nationwide power grid will mainly focus on the West to East Power Transmission Project, said Wang Yonggan, Secretary of the China Electricity Council.

In charge of the grids in North China, Northeast China, East China, Central China and Northwest China, State Grid plans to pour 850 billion yuan into 4,200-kilometer ultra-high voltage AC transmission lines with a transmission capacity of 70 million kilowatts and 340,000-kilometer 220 kilovolt DC lines with a capacity of 1.3 billion kilovolt-amperes.

Meanwhile, CSG is to invest 234 billion yuan into building a grid capable of transmitting 115 million to 135 million more kilowatts to South China's Guangdong Province. It will build 15,600-kilometer 500-kilovolt AC lines with a capacity of 61.8 million kilovolt-amperes, 1,225-kilometer 500-kilovolt DC lines with a transmission capacity of six million kilowatts, and 1,438-kilometer 800-kilovolt DC lines with a transmission capacity of 10 million kilowatts.

Moreover, 31 key cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing and Wuhan began grid construction in 2005.

In May, East China's Shandong Province earmarked 61.6 billion yuan for the construction of a 500 kilovolt main frame for its 220-kilovolt citywide power grid. By 2010, Hebei Province will spend 40 billion on forming a 500-kilovolt circular grid in Central and East China. Guizhou in Northwest China will set aside 9.4 billion yuan to renovate its county-level power grids.

Furthermore, Anhui and Hainan provinces, and the Tibet Autonomous Region have budgeted 33.6 billion, eight billion and seven billion yuan respectively for grids in cities there during the five-year period.