Railway construction underway in Xinjiang

Photo taken on June 9, 2010 shows the scene at the construction site of the 3-km railway bridge in Nanhu town, the starting point of a railway over the Lop Nur, a former lake that is known as "the sea of death", in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The 370-km Hami-Lop Nur railway, with a freight capacity of 33 million tonnes a year and involves 3.28 billion yuan (470 million U.S. dollars) in investment, will provide a faster route to transport Lop Nur's rich potassium salt. The railway, on completion in two years, would speed up exploitation of potassium salt, one of China's rarest resources used in fertilizer production.

Rail workers proceed with the construction of the 3-km railway bridge in Nanhu town, the starting point of a railway over the Lop Nur, a former lake that is known as "the sea of death", in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 9, 2010.

Workers colligate the reinforcing steel bars cluster at the construction site of the 3-km railway bridge in Nanhu town, the starting point of a railway over the Lop Nur, a former lake that is known as "the sea of death", in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 9, 2010.

Workers proceed with the construction of the 3-km railway bridge in Nanhu town, the starting point of a railway over the Lop Nur, a former lake that is known as "the sea of death", in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 9, 2010.

Two workers colligate the reinforcing steel bars cluster at the construction site of the 3-km railway bridge in Nanhu town, the starting point of a railway over the Lop Nur, a former lake that is known as "the sea of death", in Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, June 9, 2010.

(China.org.cn , June 10 , 2010)