SHANGHAI - China's third largest health insurance provider said a joint venture with German insurance giant Allianz will officially start operation in the first half of next year if "nothing unexpected happens".

Gao Guofu, chairman of Shanghai-listed China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co Ltd, told reporters Monday preparations for the joint venture are going smoothly.

The joint venture is of critical importance to the business diversification of the country's third-largest insurance company, Gao said.

Currently, China Pacific focuses on life, property, agricultural and endowment insurance.

They will initially invest 1 billion yuan ($162 million) in the joint venture, Gao said.

This will not affect its capital as the solvency adequacy ratio remained at a high level of 2.75 times by the end of the first half, he said.

China Pacific agreed to buy 34.34 percent stake in Anxin Agricultural Insurance Co though the deal has yet to get regulatory approval.

China Pacific Monday said it reaped a net profit of 6.85 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) in the first half of the year, up 25.3 percent year on year. Its total assets rose to 821.4 billion yuan by June, up 13.5 percent from the end of last year.

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