China ships 20,000 tonnes of free fuel to Japan

China today dispatched 20,000 tonnes of fuel to quake-devastated Japan to help the country cope with fuel shortages in the aftermath of the major catastrophe.

The fuel, including 10,000 tonnes of gasoline and 10,000 tonnes of diesel, left Dalian Port in northeast China's Liaoning Province by ship today, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement.

The gasoline and diesel were loaded at the same time, and relevant authorities had given all possible assistance to facilitate the preparatory work which has helped greatly shorten the time needed for loading and departure, an official with the Dalian Petrochemical Company, the producer of the fuel said.

China is shipping the fuel aid to Japan, in response to Japanese government requests to cope up with the shortages after the March 11 quake and tsunami.

The earthquake and tsunami that ravaged Japan's northeast coast left over 28,000 dead or missing and caused massive infrastructural devastation and fuel shortages.

The calamity also hit the cooling systems of the Fukushima plant, which has leaked radiation into the air and sea.