Goldman Sach's private equity fund has won regulatory approval from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) for its US$252 million acquisition of meat processor Shineway Group, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources.

SASAC approved the equity transfer deal, which effectively transforms Shineway into a foreign-owned enterprise, according to the Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co.

Shineway management owns 25 percent of the Shanghai-listed Henan Shuanghui, the Hong Kong newspaper said.

The deal requires a further approval fromthe Ministry of Commerce (MOC) before going through.

Some members of the Ministry of Commerce whose approval is required to close the deal oppose the acquisition, the report said, adding that such deals have drawn increasing criticism from opponents of the acquisition of leading Chinese companies by foreign interests.

Goldman Sachs fund Rotary Vortex outbid JP Morgan's private equity arm CCMP in April for a majority stake in Shineway, the largest meat-processor on the mainland. CDH China Growth Capital Fund is a minority partner in Rotary Vortex, the report said.

Recently, the ministry published new rules that are expected to make it harder for foreign companies to acquire mainland assets, the newspaper added.

The Carlyle Group's US$375 million proposed takeover of Xugong Construction Machinery, China's biggest maker of construction machines, stalled earlier this year amid concerns that an industry leader was about to fall into the hands of foreign investors.

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