Three Gorges operator taps in EU energy firm

China Three Gorges Corp. announced Thursday that it has won a bid for the Portuguese government's sale of a 21.35-percent stake in its power giant Energias de Portugal (EDP).

The company outbid five other competitors, including German multinational E. ON and Brazilian power generators Eletrobras and Cemig, with a payment of around 2.69 billion euros.

EDP is a major electricity operator in Europe and is Portugal's leading business group. Its annual business revenue accounts for about 9 percent of Portugal's national GDP.

Three Gorges will conduct long-term and comprehensive cooperation with EDP in the area of clean energy, said Cao Guangjing, the corporation's board of chairman.

Cao said Three Gorges plans to expand businesses to the markets of Europe, United States and Brazil based on the "standing point" of EDP and accelerate the pace of its "going global" strategy.

The Chinese company operates the 22.5-billion-U.S.-dollar Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River, the world's largest water control and hydropower project.

The Portuguese government's sale of its EDP stake is in accordance with a 78-billion-euro bailout package by the European Union and International Monetary Fund agreed upon in May, which obliges the government to improve its financial situation and revive national economy.