The State Council has issued a document to boost the development of private investment and support private capital in entering the inspection and testing sector.

The General Office of the State Council publicly released the "Several Measures to Further Promote the Development of Private Investment" (Guobanfa [2025] No. 38) on November 10, 2025, aiming to further unleash the vitality of private investment and boost its growth.
 

The newly issued "Several Measures" outlines 13 specific initiatives, covering areas such as market access, key sectors, financing support, and fair competition, thereby creating broader opportunities and a more favorable environment for private investment.

In terms of expanding market access, the document requires that for projects in sectors such as railways, nuclear power, hydropower, inter-provincial and inter-regional DC transmission lines, and oil and gas pipelines—where national approval (or ratification) is needed and which are expected to generate certain returns—special feasibility studies should be conducted to assess the viability of private capital participation. These projects are also encouraged and supported to attract private investment. For eligible projects, private capital may hold a stake of more than 10%. Meanwhile, private capital is encouraged to get involved in smaller-scale urban infrastructure projects that offer profitable opportunities.

In expanding investment areas, the measures explicitly call for guiding private capital to participate in an orderly manner in infrastructure development within the low-altitude economy sector. Additionally, private investment projects will be treated equally throughout the processes of commercial space frequency licensing and launch approvals. Furthermore, the release of a comprehensive list of major national scientific research infrastructures open to private enterprises will be accelerated, while also supporting capable private firms to take the lead in tackling critical national technological challenges.

For the service sector, the document calls for removing unreasonable entry barriers, strictly prohibiting the imposition of illegal obstacles beyond legally mandated准入 conditions, and supporting private capital investments in productive services such as industrial design, inspection and testing, and digital transformation.

In optimizing the business environment, measures emphasize the need to standardize the implementation of the new Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mechanism and revise the list of franchise projects that encourage private enterprises to participate. Strictly enforce institutional regulations in the areas of bidding and tendering, firmly prohibiting any additional conditions imposed on private firms—such as requirements for establishing branch offices or mandatory membership—and eliminating unreasonable demands, like separately requiring historical performance records or specific qualifications, that were previously placed solely on private companies.

Government support for procurement will also be further strengthened. The document stipulates that for engineering procurement projects exceeding 4 million yuan, where services are suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to provide, at least 40% of the total reserved budget must be allocated to SMEs. Additionally, it encourages increasing the advance payment ratio to more than 30% of the contract amount.

Financial support is another key priority. The measures propose increasing central budget investment to back eligible private-sector projects, while also making effective use of innovative policy-based financial tools to bolster project capital. Meanwhile, banking and financial institutions are urged to set annual service targets for private enterprises, implement the due-diligence exemption system for inclusive lending, and establish a comprehensive national investment and financing service platform to precisely allocate credit resources. Additionally, the "green channel" policy for tech-driven companies seeking IPO financing will continue to be fully implemented, further supporting private-sector projects in issuing infrastructure REITs.

To ensure the effective implementation of the policy, the document calls on all regions and relevant departments to strengthen services, guidance, and standardized management for private-sector investment, enhance statistical monitoring, and help private enterprises make informed decisions while proactively managing risks. The National Development and Reform Commission will be responsible for coordinating and overseeing the overall policy framework as well as ensuring its timely and thorough execution.

Source: China Government Network