Domestic experts reported recently that the Qinghai-Tibet
railway will reduce the cost of freight transportation between
Tibet and inland China. Lower transportation costs will expedite
the mass import of inexpensive goods to Tibet, as well as the
export of the region's locally produced commodities. Such changes
will significantly impact the lagging economic development of the
Tibetan plateau.
Tibet's development up to now has been relatively slow due to
the historically high cost of transporting goods over significant
distances. Most locals depend on goods supplied by the inland,
causing substantially higher prices for basic products. The price
of coal and cement, for example, can reach 700 yuan per ton in
Lhasa. Cheaper transportation costs with the advent of the new
railway system should significantly lower the price of various
commodities, thereby expediting Tibet's development progress.
Wei Houkai, director of the Local Economy Research Office in the
Industrial Economy Research Center under the Chinese Academy of
Social Sciences, said the completion of the Qinghai-Tibet railway
will influence four major aspects:
First, the Qinghai-Tibet railway will greatly reduce the cost of
freight transportation in and out of Tibet, which will in turn
improve Tibet's economy. "It is advantageous for local enterprises
in Tibet to exploit the outside market. They can easily open the
domestic market with more transportation channels and lower prices.
With the lower cost of freight transportation, large amounts of
commodities will be imported to Tibet, bringing about certain
impacts on Tibetan industry and agriculture. Those local
enterprises lacking competitive power will face a crisis of
survival or risk elimination," Wei said.
Second, the use of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway will further
escalate the scale at which commodities flow in and out of Tibet.
It is predicted that 2.8 million tons of goods will be transported
in 2010, of which 2.1 million tons will be transported by
railway.
Third, the methods of transport will change after the completion
of the railway. Highway transportation currently dominates freight
transportation of goods to Tibet, while pipeline transportation
transports fuel between Golmud and Lhasa. Although air
transportation is growing rapidly, proportionally it accounts for a
very small percentage of freight transportation.?With the rail
line completed, it is predicted that 75 percent of the goods moving
in and out of Tibet will be transported by railway.
Forth, the Qinghai-Tibet Railway will influence the kinds of
goods flowing in and out of Tibet. At present, Tibet imports
energy, raw materials and daily goods. Its exports consist of
livestock products, lumber, minerals and so on. Wei believes a
great deal of low-value added raw energy sources, such as coal,
cement, iron, steel, chemical fertilizer, and petroleum, will be
more readily available to Tibet. Meanwhile, local products,
including minerals, Tibetan medicine, yak, and barley, will be
brought to the inland market.
The section of the railway between Golmud and Lhasa was begun on
June 29, 2001, and completed on October 15, 2005. It spans 1,142
kilometers in length, and the total planned investment is about
26.2 billion yuan (US$3.27 billion). The railway's predicted impact
on the Tibetan region makes the Qinghai-Tibet Railway one of the
most symbolic and important projects in the development of western
China.
(China.org.cn June 26, 2006)