Reform of energy policymaking less radical than expected

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) will be folded into the National Energy Administration (NEA), the State Council said, as it set aside a proposal for a more dramatic shake-up in the energy sector.

The move, which State Council Secretary General Ma Kai said would "better co-ordinate efforts to push forward the development and reform of the energy sector, and enhance its supervision and regulation", nonetheless stopped short of calls to group energy responsibilities under a dedicated ministry-level agency.

The newly expanded NEA will remain under the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the top industry regulator and policymaker. It will be led by current SERC head Wu Xinxiong.

Current NEA chief Liu Tienan has been targeted for sacking, two people familiar with the restructuring said.

In December, an editor for , Luo Changping, said authorities were looking into irregularities under Liu, whom he accused of lying on his résumé as his family profited from his position. The NEA has denied the accusations.

It had been proposed five years ago to create a new cabinet-level Ministry of Energy to oversee the roughly 10 ministerial and sub-ministerial bodies and state-owned enterprises in the oil, coal and electricity industries.