BEIJING Yanjing Brewery Co, China's third-biggest beermaker, won regulatory approval for a plan to sell as much as 1.8 billion yuan (US$262 million) of shares to upgrade production lines and build barley processing plants.

The approval was given by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, Beijing-based Yanjing said in a statement yesterday. The brewer said in January it plans to sell as many as 86 million shares at 20.95 yuan each to 10 investors through a private placement.