Beijing Flags Opening of Power, Telecoms, Rail, Oil and Gas Sectors to Private Competition

The Chinese central government has issued a directive which calls for loosening of the conditions for private enterprise to operate in the national economy.

Beijing released the “CPC Central Committee and State Council Opinions Concerning Creating a Better Development Environment to Support Private Enterprise Reform and Development” (中共中央 国务院关于营造更好发展环境支持民营企业改革发展的意见) on 22 December.

The Opinions propose opening certain key sectors to greater competition, including industries which private enterprises have long struggled to enter such as power, telecommunications, rail, oil and natural gas.

The Opinions call specifically for the “research and formulation of specific paths and measures for private enterprises to enter markets based on sectors, areas and operations, and confirm roadmaps and timetables.”

Support for private enterprises will include allowing private enterprises to:

• Undertake basic telecommunication operations via share ownership,
• Undertake power generation, allocation and sales operations via share control or share ownership,
• Enter oil and gas exploration and development, refinement and sales operations,
• Construct storage, delivery, pipeline and other forms of infrastructure for crude oil, natural gas and refined oil,
• Import crude oil and export refined oil.

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