10 December 2012: China will be receiving a US$150 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to improve the water transport system on the Xiang River in Hunan province and expand hydropower generation.

The project will increase the depth of the river upstream to make it accessible year-round to larger vessels and link coastal cities to underdeveloped areas inland. The project is projected to reduce CO2 emissions by 290,000 tons by 2018, as a result of hydropower generation. [ADB Press Release]