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BEIJING - China has formally launched a project to build a high-speed railway line between Beijing and Shanghai costing more than 200 billion yuan ($35 billion), the Government said yesterday.
An inter-ministerial "leading group", chaired by Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan, will oversee construction of the line, according to a statement on the central government's website, www.gov.cn.
Trains on the new line will run at speeds of up to 350km/h, cutting the time of the 1320km journey to five hours from 12.
The group will be responsible for overseeing the design and commissioning of the line, the statement said.
It did not say what role, if any, there would be for foreign firms.
State media has reported that China's major banks and possibly the National Social Security Fund intend to invest in the project.
Sources said last week that Ping An Insurance (Group) of China, PICC Property and Casualty, and China Life Insurance were set to invest more than 10 billion yuan each in the project company.
- Reuters
