In what could be one of the biggest IPOs in Chinese history, China National Nuclear Power plans to raise $27 billion through IPO to fund the upcoming projects. It will be the first IPO for a nuclear power company in the country.
The company has not yet specified a date. On the website of Ministry of Environmental Protection, China National Nuclear Power stated that the proceeds will be allocated to five major nuclear power projects. The ministry has approved the plan, which will now just need an approval from China Securities Regulatory Commission.
The Chinese government had suspended the approval of new nuclear power plants after the Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan. China had ordered safety checks on all the existing plans and construction sites.
The government has not decided when to start approving the new projects but the Chinese cabinet and the State Cabinet recently approved a nuclear safety plan. The Government says that the country’s nuclear plants meet all the international safety standards.
Nuclear power, chemical and mining companies in China must receive an approval from the environment ministry before they can submit IPO application to China Securities Regulatory Commission. If the project is approved, it would easily surpass the Hong Kong-Shanghai dual listing of Agricultural Bank of China, to become the country’s biggest IPO.
On the flip side, nuclear power expansion might be slowing down in China. There is speculation that China wants to scale down the 2020 target for nuclear power generation capacity, from the earlier expectations of 80 gigawatts to 60-70 gigawatts.
