|
The first-ever railway to be built with privately
invested shares is expected to break
ground
in East China this year - a key move in the
finance and investment system in the previously government-monopolized
sector.
Wang Min, director of the Planning Department of the Ministry of
Railways, said the Quzhou-Chang-shan railway project in Zhejiang Province
has been planned by his ministry and will be built this year.
Changshan Cement Co Ltd, a locally privately-owned company, holds 32.5
per cent shares in the total investment of the railway project, according
to Sun Qin, director of the office for the project's preparation.
The other investors are the Ministry of Railways and Changshan County
government with the proportion of their share holdings respectively being
35 and 32.5 per cent, Sun said.
The railway sector is among a few of the industries
that remain a government monopoly
in China.
The construction capital of the nation's railway network mainly depends
on government input, including railway construction funds from the central
government, the loan from the State Development Bank and economic input
from local government.
Only around 1,000 kilometres railways are built every year due to the
shortage of capital, which has constituted a bottleneck for the nation's
rapid economic growth.
Statistics from the Ministry of Railways indicate the nation's total
investment in the construction of railway systems per year is less than 60
billion yuan (US$7.3 billion).
According to the plan, the 45-kilometre railways needs a total of 775
million yuan (US$ 93.7 million) in investment, Sun said.
"The railway project to be built is small in its
size and investment, but it is considered a pilot project for reforming the highly-monopolized system of
financing and investment system in the sector," he said.
(China Daily) | 
Updated: 2005-02-23 09:03
