BEIJING, May 27 -- The Shenhua Group, China's biggest coal miner, plans to double its coal output by 2010, according to Zhang Xiwu, general manager of the company.

    "In the next five years, we plan to boost our coal output to 400 million tons, with profits reaching around 50 billion yuan, (US$6.25 billion)," said Zhang at an energy forum at the Ninth China Beijing International High-Tech Expo on Friday.

    Over the same period, the company plans to increase its power generating capacity to 30,000 megawatts.

    The company also plans to pay more attention to its coal liquefaction projects.

    Shenhua has embarked on an ambitious project in Erdos, a city in North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

    By transforming coal into refined oil, the Shenhua coal liquefaction project could offer an efficient way to quench China's thirst for energy.

    China's first coal liquefaction project is expected to begin operating in 2007, with an initial annual oil output topping 1 million tons.

    Last year, the net profit of the Beijing-based company jumped 75 per cent to 15.63 billion yuan (US$1.95 billion).

    It sold 144.4 million tons of commercial coal last year, with an average price of 305 yuan (US$38.125) per ton, an increase of 24.5 per cent.

    The company has started a process of mergers and acquisitions.

    In March, the Hong Kong-listed China Shenhua Energy said it would pay its parent 1.16 billion yuan (US$145 million) to acquire a coal and power project in Shaanxi Province.

    This will boost its coal reserves by 9.1 per cent and increase its power-generating capacity by 55 per cent by 2010.

    (Source: China Daily)