A planning map of northeast China's Jilin province. (Photo/caijing.com.cn)
(ECNS) -- Northeast China's Jilin province, an aging industrial base waiting to be rejuvenated, has mapped out an ambitious economic restructuring plan that will see the construction of major infrastructure projects and may open a new route across the Arctic Ocean linked to Europe.
The "green economic transition development zone" involves cities and counties in an area of 87,000 square kilometers, accounting for 46.4 percent of the province's total land area, caijing.com.cn reports.
The plan supports building new and upgrading of current railways, expressways, ports and airports to realize "a seamless connection through different transportation methods in northeastern Asia."
One of the newly built railways would help move mineral water more easily to external markets. A high-speed railway connecting between the city of Huichun and Russian port city of Vladivostok is also in planning.
The railway network will boost transportation capacity and also form a corridor with Mongolia to the west, Russia to the east and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to the north of the province.
Expressways connecting with a number of border cities will also be built, according to the plan. The blueprint also includes the construction of eight new cross-border bridges and upgrade of two existing ones.
Wang Zhanguo, a researcher with the province's development research center, said well-developed transportation networks are key to development in the province's eastern areas and also important to its participation in China's "One Road and One Belt" initiative.
Such transportation projects make Jilin a strategic component in the initiative and also boost its standing in northeast Asia's international cooperation.
The province also plans to build eight airports for both general aviation and short-distance travel. The airport in Huichun has a planned investment of 300 million yuan ($48.3 million).
In addition, Jilin will actively promote the construction of Russia's Zarubino Port into one of the largest in northeast Asia and take advantage of DPRK ports to reach the global market.
It also looks forward to building a new ocean route passing through Sakhalin Island, Kamchatka Peninsula, Bering Strait, and Arctic Ocean to reach the Netherlands, Britain, Norway and other EU countries.
The province is attempting to make it a strategic pivot in realizing the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiative and form an ecological safety, open and interactive, as well as green industry system, the report stated.
