Chinese companies are making every effort to ensure smooth progress in their overseas projects amid the novel coronavirus epidemic.

The construction of the Hunutlu Thermal Power Plant Project, China's biggest project with direct investment in Turkey, is underway despite the epidemic.

A meeting aiming to guarantee work safety is held at the Hunutlu Thermal Power Plant Project  on Feb. 10.  (Photo via the State Power Investment Corporation Limited)

The project undertaken by the Shanghai Electric Power Co., Ltd. (SEP) affiliated to the State Power Investment Corporation Limited, is a flagship project linking the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative with Turkey's "Middle Corridor" vision.

"After the epidemic, we mobilized staff members of all construction companies to continue working, and cancelled the Spring Festival holiday for 120 project managers on site," said Li Xiaofeng, deputy head of the Hunutlu Thermal Power Plant, adding that the company will rearrange a vacation for them when they return to China based on the epidemic situation.

The construction of the Karot Hydropower Plant in Pakistan is also advancing in an orderly manner. During the Spring Festival holidays, 896 Chinese construction workers and 4,370 of their Pakistani counterparts stayed in their positions, striving to realize flood prevention goals this year.

The plant, undertaken by China Three Gorges Corporation, is a priority project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

(Photo via China Three Gorges Corporation)

When completed, it will produce some 3.2 billion kilowatt-hours of clean power annually, providing a reliable energy source for Pakistan's economic and social development.

Meanwhile, Chinese companies have also taken measures in their overseas projects to prevent the spread of the epidemic, including enhanced disinfection operations and providing personal protective equipment for all personnel, such as masks.

Peng Huagang, secretary general of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said that state-owned enterprises hire a large number of local people and international employees for their overseas projects, and are seeking to guarantee rational allocation of resources and smooth progress in their overseas projects.

"We believe that state-owned enterprises will surely overcome difficulties and promote smooth progress of their overseas projects as long as they fully implement the measures,” Peng added.