Shanxi to slash half of its coalmines

Shanxi province, which produces one-fourth of China's coal, vowed to speed up the overhaul of its coalmines, cutting the number by more than half by the end of 2010.

"We plan to shut down the unsafe and low-productive coalmines, narrowing down the number from 2,598 (at the end of last year) to 1,000 in two years," Wang Shouzhen, chief of Shanxi coal bureau, was quoted by the Shanxi Evening yesterday.

"Earlier, we planned to cut the number to 1,500 at the end of 2010, but decided to speed up because of mounting pressure to abide by safe production norms," he said.