The company is working with an adviser on its planned restructuring, and aims to finish the process as soon as the first half of next year, the people said.

The power utility had won approval from shareholders in a special meeting in February to reorganise its power generation and distribution businesses into separate holding companies, according to a stock exchange filing.

This move is aimed at preparing for upcoming reforms in the electricity supply industry in Malaysia, the company had said.

Upon completion, the plan is for a listing by introduction of the generation business, where investors would be given shares in the unit in proportion to their existing holdings in TNB, the people said.

Deliberations are at an early stage and there is no certainty the deal will proceed, said the people, asking not to be identified as the process is private.

A representative for TNB said the company is not working on any groundwork for a listing as its current focus is to drive operational efficiency for the generation unit.

Shares in TNB rose as much as 6.2% today, their biggest advance since April 17. The rise outpaced the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index’s uptick of as much as 2.1%.

TNB counts state-owned sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd and the Employees Provident Fund among its largest owners.

The power generation unit’s earnings before interest and taxes in 2018 was RM1.6 billion, according to the statement. It is targeting RM2.6 billion in 2025.

The power company would be following Malaysian conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd, which listed its property and plantation units by introduction in 2017.

TNB, which has a market value of about RM59.3 billion, owns 47 plants in the peninsula with a total domestic generating capacity of 10,617MW, according to its 2019 annual report.

It also has a presence in the UK, Kuwait, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India and Indonesia.