The New South Wales Opposition, the Greens and unions have joined together to slam the Government's $10 billion deal to lease off state-owned electricity business TransGrid to a consortium including several foreign investors.

Key points: Consortium pays more than $10 billion to lease poles and wires

Consortium pays more than $10 billion to lease poles and wires Premier Mike Baird has welcomed the new foreign investors

Premier Mike Baird has welcomed the new foreign investors The Opposition says the sale will not cover the state's infrastructure costs

The Opposition says the sale will not cover the state's infrastructure costs Unions are worried about electricity price hikes

NSW Premier Mike Baird this morning announced the NSW Electricity Networks consortium had won the bid for the 99-year TransGrid lease after offering to pay $10.258 billion.

TransGrid was the first "poles and wires" business to be put on the market as part of the State Government's plan to lease power assets to raise money for infrastructure investment.

The Premier had been hoping to raise $13 billion from privatising three of the state's major three electricity assets, so raising more than $10 billion from the very first deal has left him excited.

"We still have two leases to go, but obviously this is a fantastic start," Mr Baird said.

"We're determined to do everything we can and obviously we won't count anything for granted until all leases are completed.

"But I can assure you that if there are additional dollars that come, every single one of those will go into additional infrastructure for the people of this state."

The consortium consists of:

Canadian pension fund CDPQ (24.99 per cent)

Canadian pension fund CDPQ (24.99 per cent) Infrastructure fund manager Hastings, as manager of the Utilities Trust of Australia (20.02 per cent)

Infrastructure fund manager Hastings, as manager of the Utilities Trust of Australia (20.02 per cent) Tawreed Investments Limited, described by the Government as "the global direct infrastructure investment vehicle of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority" (19.99 per cent)

Tawreed Investments Limited, described by the Government as "the global direct infrastructure investment vehicle of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority" (19.99 per cent) Wren House Infrastructure, owned by the Kuwait Investment Authority (19.99 per cent)

Wren House Infrastructure, owned by the Kuwait Investment Authority (19.99 per cent) Hong Kong controlled, ASX-listed energy infrastructure manager Spark Infrastructure (15.01 per cent).

The Premier said the foreign investment was welcome.

"I think I've been very clear that we welcome foreign investment, we welcome our participation in the global economy and what this represents is the United Nations.

"Hastings is a fund that has got respect not just here across this country but across the world.

"Spark are a public-listed company, they've got respect in this sector, it's a group that's come together very powerfully and it's bought together the best internationally."

The transaction means the consortium is set to become the biggest player in the national electricity grid and take over part of the Federal Government's fibre optic network, as well as control much of the nation's backup electricity supply.

Sale will not cover infrastructure costs, Opposition says

Of the proceeds, $3 billion will be used to pay off government debt, while the remainder is to be used for state infrastructure projects.

However, NSW Opposition Leader Luke Foley said the deal was "not an outstanding result".

"The net proceeds, $7 billion, cover less than half of the Government's one big road project, less than half the cost of WestConnex," he said.

"In fact, it barely covers the cost of the blowout in the WestConnex project on this Government's watch; a project they told us would cost us $10 billion, which is now up to $16.8 billion and counting."

Mr Foley was also not convinced that power prices would stay low under this new management.

"The Canadian and the Middle Eastern fund managers may well be the world's most nicest people, but somehow I don't think they're buying our electricity grid to lower families' power prices in NSW over the next 99 years."

Job guarantees are 'smoke and mirrors', unions say

Price guarantees were a condition of this electricity privatisation legislation as were five-year job guarantees for TransGrid workers.

However, Secretary of the Electrical Trades Union of Australia Steve Butler said he has no faith in either guarantee, labelling them "smoke and mirrors".

"Leading up to sale of these assets were three things ... a loss of apprenticeship opportunities ... massive job losses and ... a rise in power prices - that's the bit that's yet to hit consumers, but it will, there's no doubt now in my mind that consumers will end up paying more for electricity," Mr Butler said.

However, NSW Electricity Price Commissioner Allen Fels dismissed suggestions household and business electricity prices would rise.

"I can absolutely guarantee that the network sale today won't put up prices," he said.

"The fact is, that the prices are already set by a regulator and they won't change on account of the bidding."

Greens MP John Kaye said the higher than expected price for the lease of TransGrid raised questions about what sweeteners were offered by the State Government.

"The devil will inevitably reside in the detail and that detail will be hidden in commercial-in-confidence arrangements," he said.

"The people of NSW will only know what's happened to them when it happens and that will be down the track and it will be bad."

The NSW Government still has two more privatisation deals in the works.

Just over 50 per cent of power distributors Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy will be put up for long-term lease in coming months.