LISBON -- Portugal may be willing to allow a Chinese state-owned enterprise to take over the country's main power company, but the deal could still be thwarted by other governments which may find allies among the directors and shareholders of Energias de Portugal and even among the groups supporting the governing Socialist Party.
The government of the Iberian nation has so far welcomed the proposed 9.14 billion euro ($10.72 billion) buyout by China Three Gorges, operator of the namesake dam on the Yangtze River, of Energias de Portugal, the nation's largest company by market value. After Three Gorges' bid was announced on May 11, Prime Minister Antonio Costa described Chinese companies as "good investors" and said Portugal remained open to such investments.
