THE China Yangtze Power Co, operator of the world's largest hydropower project, says parent China Three Gorges Project Corp plans to list on the stock exchange.

China Three Gorges is in talks with authorities, the Beijing-based company said in a statement on the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday. Yangtze Power, operator of the Three Gorges Dam in the central province of Hubei, is buying generation units from its parent to boost earnings, Bloomberg News said.

China is encouraging cleaner forms of generation as developed nations step up calls for it to cut emissions.

The listed unit of China Three Gorges may acquire the entire generation business from the parent, said Yu Hai, an analyst with Shenyin & Wanguo Securities.

Yangtze Power may buy the remaining 18 generation units at the Three Gorges Dam and also those being built along the Jinsha River, Yu said.