High-speed rail on public-private partnership track

The first privately controlled high-speed railway line in China received approval to set up eight stations in early June and construction is expected to wrap up in 2021, according to a senior executive from a major shareholder in the project.

Backed by Shanghai-based conglomerate Fosun International Ltd, the Hangzhou-Shaoxing-Taizhou line will stretch 269 kilometers across the central and eastern parts of East China's Zhejiang province. So far, the project has attracted total investment of 44.89 billion yuan ($7 billion).

As a public-private partnership project, the cooperation agreement lasts for 34 years, the first four years of which will be spent on construction, followed by 30 years of management. A consortium of private companies, lead by Fosun, will hold a controlling 51 percent stake in the project.