Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing is supposed to be close to secure a 3.7 billion pounds or 5.95 billion dollars worth bid for German utility giant E. ON AG's (EONGY. PK: News ) U. K. power unit. From the deal the octogenarian billionaire will get control over half of Britain's electricity network.

As per reports Li's investment company named Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings Ltd., or CKI, has bid more than U. S.-based electric utility firm PPL Corp. (PPL: News ), the last remaining competitor, in an auction for the business.

CKI already owns thirty nine percent of the unit. MidAmerican Energy Holdings, whose owner is Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRKa: News), is also said to have been a competitor for the business.

With the addition of E. ON's U. K. business Li would have control two hundred and ninety thousand kilometers or one hundred and eighty thousand miles of cable supplying electricity to as many as thirty million British homes. E. ON will probably be announcing the winning bid in this week.

E. ON, in November last year said ,that it has plans to raise about fifteen billion euros through divestments by the end of 2013 as part of its bid to reduce debt and expand in growth regions outside Europe. As per its effort the firm has taken the decision of selling its U. K. unit in December.

In the business there is the second-largest electricity generator of UK as well as the second-biggest distribution network. The distribution business, Central Networks, provides with power to more than 5million customers in central England.

The electricity regulator of the UK, Ofgem had earlier voiced its worries about the loss of competition in the sector. Utilities in the U. K. have drawn interest from investors in the past because they are considered as relatively low risk businesses with strong cash flows. E. ON's British assets is said to have a regulated asset value of about GBP 3.1 billion.