Rural Power Grid Renovation Benefits FarmersWith the rural power grid renovation almost completed in northeast China's Jilin province, farmers now can use more electricity at a considerably lower cost.The three-billion-yuan (US$363 million) project has saved farmers nearly 100 million yuan (US$12 million) in electricity cost, according to sources from the provincial government. The provincial government has improved the power grids of 30 counties last year, with the grids of the remaining areas of the province to be completed this year, said Ma Jichun, director of the provincial Development Planning Commission. Sources from the Commission also said that the nationwide power grid renovation project in China's rural areas, which started three years ago, has begun to boost both the local and national economies. By the end of May 2000, some 80 billion yuan (US$10 billion) had been injected into the project to complete the power grid rehabilitation projects in 512 counties nationwide. And another 54.64 billion yuan (US$6.6 billion) has been earmarked to wind up similar projects in over 1,000 counties of the country. |
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