The Fengnan Reservoir Project in Qiannan autonomous prefecture, Southwest China's Guizhou province, has recently been approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, according to the provincial Development and Reform Commission in a statement on Dec 27.

The approval means that all of Guizhou's projects listed among the 172 Major National Water Conservancy Projects list have been completely approved by national authorities.

Located in the upper reaches of the Zhong'an River in Fuquan city, the reservoir is used mainly for urban and rural residents and as an industrial water supply.

A total of 4.28 billion yuan ($623.05 million) was invested into the project, of which 2.97 billion yuan is capital and another 1.78 billion yuan is capital support.

Construction will consist of reservoir engineering and water delivery, and the structure will have a total storage capacity of 104 million cubic meters. A water transportation project will be 53.2 kilometers in length. The average annual water supply provided by the structure is expected to reach 71.1 million cubic meters.

It is expected be able to supply water to more than 600,000 people in Weng'an county and Fuquan city by 2030 and will also be able to provide an adequate water supply to the national-level phosphate coal chemical base in Qiannan.

Guizhou has six large reservoirs and the province is on track to develop a quality modern water network, aiming to resolve its water shortages, according to a staff member of the provincial Development and Reform Commission.