China's NDRC invites second batch of public-private partnership projects

[BEIJING] China's state planning agency released on Wednesday a second batch of project proposals worth 2.26 trillion yuan (S$492 billion) in investment, which are available for public-private partnerships (PPP) funding.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said the 1,488 projects related to development areas such as agriculture, water, transportation facilities, public service, and the environment.

As its economic growth slows, China is increasingly turning to PPP, a project finance model not commonly used in the country, to fill a widening funding gap as Beijing clamps down on traditional off-balance sheet borrowing methods used by local authorities.

By the end of November, 31.5 per cent of the 1,043 PPP projects NDRC recommended in May had signed contracts. The largest project was a Beijing subway line, with an investment of 49.5 billion yuan, NDRC said earlier this week.

REUTERS