29 Mar 2011 12:37

Shanxi CBM power plants to generate 6 bln kWh of electricity annually by 2015

Shanghai. March 29 INTERFAX-CHINA - Central China's Shanxi Province will have coalbed methane-fueled power plants with combined installed capacity of 1 million kilowatts (kW) by 2015, the Shanxi provincial government said March 29.

The coalbed methane (CBM) plants are expected to generate over 6 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity annually by 2015, the government added.

Due to inadequate investment and exploration technology, China's 2010 CBM output was less than 10 billion cubic meters (bcm), though the country has estimated CBM reserves of more than 36.7 trillion cubic meters (tcm).

Shanxi is China's second largest coal producing region and has CBM reserves of over 10 tcm, according to provincial government estimates.

-WV