Huaibei

Huaibei (zh-cp|c=淮北|p=Huáiběi) is a prefecture-level city in northern Anhui province, People's Republic of China. It borders Suzhou to the east, Bengbu to the south, Bozhou to the west, and the province of Henan to the north.

Administration

The prefecture-level city of Huaibei administers 4 county-level divisions, including 3 districts and 1 county.

*Lieshan District (烈山区)
*Xiangshan District (相山区)
*Duji District (杜集区)
*Suixi County (濉溪县)

These are further divided into 43 township-level divisions, including 20 towns, 8 townships and 15 subdistricts.

Natural environment

Geography

Situated in western Anhui at coord|34.15|N|116.65|E|, Huaibei is located at the junction of Jiangsu, Henan, and Anhui. The city has three districts and one county with a total area of 2.715 km² and a population of 2.04 million.

Natural resources

Huaibei has vast quantities of mineral reserves including marble, iron, copper, gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, fire clay and limestone. It also possesses 2.726 million tons of coal.

Economy

Industry

Huaibei is the home to numerous chemical, construction, machinery, textile, power, electronics, and mineral industrial firms. The city has over 2,000 industrial enterprises, of which 22 large and medium-sized ones are ran by the state.

The annual output of raw coal from Huaibei is 2,000 million tons, ranking first in eastern China.

The power industry has also developed rapidly and is currently ranked third in eastern China - Huaibei Power Station has a total installed capacity of 950 MW and an annual electricity output of 620 GW. The Huaibei No. 2 Power Station, with the total installed capacity of l.2 GW, is also being built.

The textile industry in Huaibei is ranked second in Anhui. It has established a comprehensive system of printing and dyeing, wool and silk spinning, and knitting processes. The textile firms have 200,000 spindles, 15,000 looms, with a printing & dyeing capacity of 110 million meters.

Huaibei's winemaking industry is over 1,000 years old. The "Kouzi" wine from the city has an annual output of 20,000 tons.

The construction industry is developing rapidly with an annual cement output of 2 million tons.

The chemical industry focuses on industrial products such as fertilizers, coke, sulphuric acid, and rubber.

The metallurgy, machinery, electronics, and food industries have also produced more than 100 kinds of products have reached or been approaching the national or international level.

Agriculture

Huaibei is the main agriculture base for producing and exporting grain, cotton, and domestic animals. The main crops are wheat, maize, cotton, broad bean, rice, and potato. Livestocks include cattle, horse, pig, goat, rabbit, and domestic birds, etc. More than 200,000 mu (130 km²) of land has been cultivated for fisheries that contain a large number of fish, shrimps, and crabs. The city is part of the National Agricultural Comprehensive Development Zones in Huanghai and Huaihai.

Foreign trade

Huaibei is one of the ten largest coal exporting cities in China and the largest exporter of textile products within Anhui Province. A large exporting enterprise in the city is responsible for producing 13 classes of over 100 kinds of export goods, among them coal, textile, grain, oil, silk, ores, chemicals, and pharmaceutical products. These merchandise are then exported to more than 80 countries and regions such as the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, Western Europe, Russia, and Hong Kong, etc.

Development zone

Huaibei has formed South Lake Economic and Technological Development Zone and the Tanxikouzi Economic and Technological Development Zone to attract foreign investors.

Transportation and communication

The railways in the city are linked to Beijing-Shanghai Railway to the east, Urumqi-Lianyungang Railway to the north, and Beijing-Kowloon Railway to the west. Six state and provincial highways run through the city. Qinglongshan Port in Huaibei opens to Hongze Lake that connects to Yangtze River. The city is also only 50 km away from Xuzhou Guanyin Airport.

The 550 MHz stations in Huaibei can receive televised programs from more than 20 channels in China.

External links

* [http://www.huaibei.gov.cn Government website of Huaibei] (in Simplified Chinese)