First national PPP rules on the way

China's first national-level legal regulation on public-private partnership projects is in the pipeline, to prevent the expansion of local governments' contingent liability, as infrastructure is supporting economic growth, according to a senior official.

Guidance for PPP project management will be released before the legal regulation by the Ministry of Finance, to identify local governments' spending responsibility in the model and clarify the boundary between on-budget financing and contingent liabilities, or the hidden part of local governments' debt, said Wang Yi, director of the ministry's Financial Department.

Based on the guidance, the legislative process of PPP management rules could be further advanced, which is now being drafted jointly by the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Justice, said Wang.