Macquarie Group, Ltd., and China Everbright, Ltd. are planning to raise $1.5 billion for two funds to invest in toll roads, airports, renewable energy, water treatment, ports and railways in the Chinese mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong, China Daily reported.
The two groups will contribute a total of $100 million to the funds, the newspaper reported.
"China has a long history of private and foreign sector investment in infrastructure, with well-developed national policies promoting infrastructure investment to improve business efficiency and national wealth, whilst encouraging foreign capital and operating expertise," Everbright CEO Chen Shuang said.
One of the funds will target international institutional investors and focus on industries where the Chinese government encourages foreign investment. The second fund, which is awaiting regulatory approval, will focus on domestic investors and allow yuan capital commitments, it said.
Despite the global economic crisis, the International Monetary Fund predicts the Chinese economy will continue to grow at 6% to 10% per year, which encourages investors in the country and abroad to join the infrastructure development, Chen said.
"The rate of investment into infrastructure development in China is still believed to be among the highest in the world. We see many opportunities to bring international capital and asset management expertise to support this growth, to the benefit of investors and the country," Chen said.
Source: China Daily