The State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) plans to sell off electricity generation assets valued at more than 10 billion yuan by next spring at the latest.

The sale involves an aggregated generating capacity of 9.2 million kilowatts in 38 electric power plants, and covers seven listed companies and three joint ventures scattered in 21 provinces.

The stock is held by the State Grid Corporation and China Southern Power Grid, the Beijing Times reported here on Wednesday. In 2002, they were commissioned by the Chinese government to manage and sell the assets to finance the ongoing reform of the power industry.,

A special work team has been established with members from the SERC, the State Development and Reform Commission and the Commission for Supervision and Management of State-owned Properties under the State Council.

Preparation work has now been completed and intermediary agencies responsible for accounting, legal affairs, asset evaluation and auditing have been appointed. The sale is the next move, said the newspaper.

But the work team refused to disclose the intermediaries or potential purchasers involved, saying that they had to protect business secrets.

Both domestic and foreign investors are authorized to make offers. The Ministry of Finance will use revenue from the sale to reform the industry.

China began reforming its electricity industry in 2002. The road map involves splitting the state-owned assets into three kinds of separate business entity - electricity generation, transmission and distribution - then privatizing them and finally ushering in market competition and breaking down monopolies.

A major breakthrough in the reform occurred in 2002 when two power grid corporations, five power generating groups and four subsidiary consulting and engineering group were established.

SERC Chairman Chai Songyue pointed out that China's installed generation capacity and electric power production have grown at an unprecedented average annual rate of 9.2 percent and 13.8 percent respectively since the reform.

Despite surging electricity demand in recent years, China has eliminated nationwide power shortages and managed to provide the electricity needed for economic and social development, he said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2006)