- Province raises minimum private ownership thresholds in strategic sectors
- New measures expand on earlier private-sector support package launched in 2023
Zhejiang has opened sectors including railways, nuclear power, offshore wind and urban infrastructure to private investment under a new policy package aimed at reviving business confidence and expanding financing opportunities for the private sector.
The measures, released by the provincial government on May 14, build on Zhejiang’s earlier “32 measures” framework introduced in August 2023 to support private enterprise growth and reduce hidden market barriers.
The latest policy expands the number of sectors open to private capital from seven to nine by adding offshore wind and urban infrastructure projects.
Under the new rules, private investors must hold at least 20% stakes in nuclear power and deep-sea offshore wind projects, while eligible projects in other sectors must allocate at least 10% ownership to private capital.
Private participation in nuclear energy already has precedent in Zhejiang. Geely Holding Group invested in the country’s first privately backed nuclear power project, the San’ao Nuclear Power Plant in Zhejiang.
The project’s first unit entered commercial operation on April 29, with Geely’s technology affiliate holding a 2% stake in the initial phase and expected to increase its ownership later.
Beyond market access, Zhejiang also introduced a review mechanism requiring formal feasibility assessments before approvals can proceed, in an effort to ensure projects move beyond policy pledges into implementation.
Mandatory private-sector participation
The province also increased guaranteed allocations of funding, industrial land and energy-consumption quotas for private-sector projects from at least 70% to at least 80%.
That means more than four-fifths of provincial investment funds, newly approved industrial land quotas and additional energy-use allowances must go toward private investment projects.
On financing, Zhejiang said it plans to add more than 500 billion yuan ($73.57 billion) in rollover loans this year, allowing companies to renew bank borrowing without repaying principal first.
Authorities said the program will continue expanding at an annual rate of more than 5% to reduce cash-flow pressure on businesses.
The policy package also replaces much of the broad encouragement language common in earlier government documents with mandatory numerical targets.
More than 20 provisions include explicit quotas, including requirements that enterprises participate in at least 80% of major provincial science and technology projects and lead at least 70% of them.
At least half of candidates selected under provincial-level talent programs must also come from private enterprises.
Analysts at the provincial development planning institute said the quantified targets could make policy implementation more predictable for businesses while giving regulators clearer benchmarks for enforcement.
A backbone of private economy
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Zhejiang Development and Reform Commission official said the measures aim to expand investment opportunities and give private capital “projects to invest in, confidence to invest and reassurance to keep investing.”
Zhejiang is one of China’s strongest private-sector economies, with private businesses contributing more than two-thirds of provincial GDP.
By 2025, the province had more than 11.64 million registered market entities, over 96% of which were privately owned. Private firms accounted for more than 80% of Zhejiang’s total foreign trade and contributed nearly four-fifths of industrial growth among large-scale manufacturers with annual main-business revenue of 20 million yuan and more.
