China Securities Regulatory Commission approved the A-share initial public offering (IPO) application of China Coal Energy Ltd, the country's second largest coal manufacturer, on Friday.

It marks the return of another coal giant returning to the Chinese mainland market after China Shenhua, the country's largest coal producer, made a strong debut on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in early October 2007, netting 66.58 billion yuan (US$9.16 billion) through its IPO.

According to the prospectus released on January 7 by China Coal Energy, the company plans to issue no more than 1.525 billion A shares on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, representing 11.51 percent of the company's capitalization after the IPO.

The proceeds raised would be used for construction of major coal projects in northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and northeastern Heilongjiang Province, and supplementing the company's operating capital.

China Coal Energy was exclusively initiated by China National Coal Group Corp in August 2006 and was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in December 2006.

China Coal Energy's assets were valued at 55.29 billion yuan with net assets of 31.88 billion yuan by the end of June 2007. The operating turnover reached 16.93 billion yuan and net profits hit 2.44 billion yuan in the first half of 2007.