China National Petroleum Corp. has started construction of the country's Third West-East Gas Pipeline (WEPP 3), comprising 7,378 km spread over one trunkline and eight branches. Three gas storage sites and one LNG liquefaction plant are also part of the project.

The 5,220-km trunk will start in Horgos, Xinjiang, and end at Fuzhou, Fujian province, crossing 10 provinces and regions including Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian, and Guangdong. The pipeline will deliver 30 billion cu m/year using an operating pressure of 10-12 MPa.

CNPC expects the pipeline to be completed in 2015, connecting to Line C of the Central Asia-China Gas Pipeline, also now under construction. WEPP 3 will mainly transport gas from the Central Asia pipeline, using incremental production in the Tarim basin and coal gas in Xinjiang to supplement these supplies.

Rolls-Royce was awarded a contract to supply compression for the project in 2010 (OGJ Online, June 29, 2010).