China needs to build a large-scale underground infrastructure network in the western region to protect key energy and defense facilities, while strengthening strategic reserves and long-term crisis response capabilities.
This is a proposal from energy experts in the context of an increasingly unstable global security environment.
Mr. Zhang Shishu, an expert from China Electric Power Construction Corporation, believes that the country should develop a deep underground construction system to protect strategic facilities.
Mr. Zhang proposed placing important facilities at a greater depth than currently. This arrangement helps projects to be difficult to detect and less affected by external threats, thereby improving the safety of key infrastructure.
According to him, many areas in China have suitable conditions to develop large-scale underground facilities. Among them, hydropower centers in the southwest and oil and gas fields in the northwest are considered ideal locations for building strategic underground reserves.
These facilities can be used to store oil, natural gas and rare metals - important resources for the economy and national security.
Placing repositories underground not only helps protect resources in emergencies but also increases the ability to maintain the economy's operations when the global supply chain is disrupted.
According to experts, in the context of the world facing many risks such as geopolitical conflicts, energy fluctuations and extreme natural disasters, building an underground infrastructure system can help China strengthen its crisis resilience.
Underground facilities also have advantages in security and sustainability. They are less affected by attacks or disasters on the ground, and help maintain the operation of energy and defense systems in emergencies.
According to analyses published on official Chinese media channels such as Xinhua News Agency, the construction of a large-scale underground infrastructure network is also consistent with the country's strategy of strengthening energy security and strengthening national defense capabilities in the coming decades.
Some experts compare the underground structure system that China is being recommended to develop to a "underground Great Wall".
This system not only plays a role in protecting strategic resources but also helps improve defense capabilities and crisis response in the context of an increasingly complex international environment.
