The construction of a new power transmission line on the Tibetan Plateau — the Sichuan-Tibet Grid Interconnection Project — was launched this week, according to the Engineering and Construction Headquarters of the Sichuan-Tibet Grid Interconnection.

It will be the second-largest grid interconnection project on the Tibetan Plateau, following the Qinghai-Tibet Grid Interconnection Project that was completed in 2011.

The 1,521-km line will run from Xiangcheng county in the southern Garze Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Sichuan province, to Qamdo, an eastern prefecture of the Tibet autonomous region.

"This project is designed to connect the isolated electricity network of Tibet's Qamdo prefecture with the State Grid Corp of China," said Ding Yansheng, deputy commander of the Engineering and Construction Headquarters.

"This project is designed to address the power demand and electricity shortages in Tibet's Qamdo prefecture and the southern Garze prefecture of Sichuan," Ding said.

"We aimed to transform the output of rich hydroelectricity resource advantages of Qamdo into economic advantages, and there will be 500,000 beneficiaries in Qamdo prefecture."

The completion of this project will make a great contribution to economic development in the Tibet autonomous region and the Garze prefecture.

"Compared with the previous grid interconnection project on the plateau, this one faces more challenges with the harsh construction site and transportation," Ding said.

He said most construction sites are in high mountain areas with an average attitude of 3,850 meters, and the highest altitude is more than 4,980 meters."

With estimated investment of more than 6.6 billion yuan ($1 billion), the project is planned to be completed by the end of 2014 or at least by the first half of 2015, Ding said.

More than 20,000 builders will participate in the project, according to the headquarters.

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