URUMQI (Xinhua) — Construction on a slaughterhouse has begun in Alashankou in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, making the inland port the region’s first to import live cattle directly from Kazakhstan.

The project, with a total investment of 660 mln yuan ($98 mln), will be composed of five quarantine farms. An estimated 100,000 heads of beef cattle are expected to be quarantined a year once the first phase of the construction is completed in October. Another 140,000 heads a year will be quarantined before being slaughtered after the second phase is completed by next October.

Arman Utegulov, representing the agricultural ministry of Kazakhstan, said 10,000 farms and 5,000 to 6,000 food processing factories in Kazakhstan will guarantee the meat supply for the project.

Wu Fengjun, a local official, said the project is an important measure to deepen and widen the trade and interconnectivity between the two countries.

Alashankou is a designated port for imported meat, food and vehicles. Over 18 mln tonnes of goods passed through the port in 2018, with a total value of 77.9 bln yuan, up 8.9% and 7.3% respectively.