Guangzhou, the capital city of South China Guangdong Province, plans to invest RMB 38.5 billion in electricity infrastructure in the period from 2009 to 2013 to build 156 substations and expand the power grid, according to the information released yesterday by the local electricity regulator, the Shanghai Securities News reported.

The construction is in line with the 11th five-year plan for Guangzhou's power system. The plan includes both 220 kv projects and 110 kv projects, which will take between four and six years to build.

It is estimated that the city will have an electrical load of up to 16.58 million kilowatts by 2013.

In 2009, the city will invest around RMB 6.72 billion in power grid construction, comparing with nearly RMB 3.23 billion in the previous year.