By 2025, the gigabit optical network will cover the cities of Taiyuan, Jinzhong, Xinzhou, Lyuliang and Yangquan in North China's Shanxi province, according to an implementation plan that was unveiled recently.

The plan details efforts to boost information and communications infrastructure construction in the agglomeration of cities in central Shanxi.

It's expected that this process will further consolidate the foundations of the development of the digital economy there.

Shanxi aims to install 46,000 5G base stations by 2025, with 5G network coverage in key places reaching 100 percent. Additionally, the number of 10G-PON ports for gigabit access is projected to reach 300,000, covering 12 million households. The number of gigabit broadband users, meanwhile, is expected to exceed 1.5 million.

Under the provincial plan, efforts will be made in seven areas.

These include strengthening the deep coverage of 5G networks in industrial parks, transportation hubs and tourist attractions, promoting the development of regional data centers and accelerating the deployment of industrial internet infrastructure.