China's nation-wide rail network is working all out to transport an additional six million tons of coal in less than 20 days to meet the demands of the coming electricity peak in this summer.  

An official from the Ministry of Railways said Tuesday that the ministry launched a campaign of coal transportation on Monday, requiring a daily transport of over 50,000 carloads of coal, 6,800 carloads more than their usual work. The campaign will continue until August 7.

Among the increased loads of coal each day, 5,000 will be used for electricity. Accordingly, a total of six million tons of coal for electricity will be transported during the campaign, said the official.

As a result of fast economic growth during the first half of the year, China is still facing shortages of electricity, coal and petroleum with limited transport capacity.

Ministerial statistics show that China's rail has transported a record 481 million tons of coal in the first half of the year, 52.37 million tons more than during the same period of last year, for an increase of 12.2 percent.

Despite the efforts of the Ministry of Railways to increase coal transportation, the problem of supply is still serious, especially in the summer, said the official.

Latest statistics show that China will face a shortage of electricity exceeding 30 million kilowatts in the third quarter, meaning that more coal will be needed for power.

To meet the demand of coal for electricity-generation, the Ministry of Railways will implement a series of measures to implement in the coming days, so as to ensure the sound operation of coal collection and transport.

(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2004)