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URUMQI, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- More than 4 million residents of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region use natural gas for their energy.
Since its operation in 2013, a pipeline has supplied 1.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas to four million urban and rural people of different ethnic groups in 42 counties or cities in the south of Xinjiang, said Li Huaqi, deputy planning manager of China National Petroleum Corporation.
The 2,424-km pipeline supplies 1.7 million cubic meters of gas per day on average and the daily volume will reach 3 million cubic meters in winter, he said.
Residents in Tarim Basin used to burn wood or coal for cooking and heating. Hotan City is the first in southern Xinjiang to use the clean energy.
Boasting three major gas basins - Tarim, Junggar and Tuha - Xinjiang began gas exploitation in 2004.
The region is expected to produce 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas this year.
