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URUMQI - A new power transmission line will be used to link Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygurautonomous region with areas that are facing a possible electricity shortage, power gridofficials said Monday. Xinjiang's high-voltage DC transmission network will be extended to the region's Kazakautonomous prefecture of Ili by September, according to officials from the State Grid's XinjiangElectric Power Company. Ili is a significant source for coal in Xinjiang and has abundant supplies of electricity. However,the area's remote location and poor facilities make it difficult to send electricity to other regionswhere it is needed more. The 410-km extension project, which runs from Ili to Manas near the regional capital of Urumqi,is estimated to cost at least 2.1 billion yuan ($331 million). Construction on the project startedin December 2011. The Xinjiang Electric Power Company plans to spend 10.2 billion yuan on six powertransmission projects in the region this year. The current network now links Urumqi, Manas, andKorla in Xinjiang to power-hungry areas in Central and East China. Central and East China have dealt with worsening power shortages in recent years, promptingauthorities to expedite the construction of long-distance power transmission lines to retrievepower from remote but energy-rich northwestern regions. Xinjiang provided East China with about 3.5 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity in 2011,the Xinjiang Electric Power Company said. | 
