Australia Finance Minister says to sell insurer Medibank Private in public float

SYDNEY, March 26 (Reuters) - Australia's finance minister said on Wednesday the government will sell state-owned health insurer Medibank Private in a public float, which local media have tipped will fetch about A$4 billion ($3.76 billion).

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said the sale will take place in the 2014/15 financial year. He did not put a price on the sale.

The announcement comes as Australia's federal and state governments pursue an aggressive strategy to sell off state-owned assets to pay down debt and fund future projects.

($1 = 1.0933 Australian Dollars)

(Reporting By Byron Kaye; Editing by Kim Coghill)

((byron.kaye@thomsonreuters.com)(+612 9373 1815))

Keywords: AUSTRALIA MEDIBANK/