(F) EARLY 1990
CONFIDENTIAL
147735
MDHIAN
COMMENCEMENT OF SITE INVESTIGATION AND DETAILED DESIGN. GAZETTING UNDER FORESHORE AND SEABED (RECLAMATIONS) ORDINANCE.
2. IF THIS PROGRAMME IS FOLLOWED, CONSTRUCTION OF SEAWALLS CAN START IN LATE 1991, AND RECLAMATION BY THE BEGINNING OF 1992. THE PROJECT IS TO BE DIVIDED INTO FOUR PACKAGES, THE AREA OF HMS TAMAR BEING PACKAGE 4. RECLAMATION ON THIS PACKAGE WOULD NEED TO BEGIN AT THE END OF 1992. IN ORDER TO DO THIS, THE RN FACILITIES WILL NEED TO BE RELOCATED BY LATE 1992.
3. TO RELOCATE THE RN WE ARE NOT (NOT) PLANNING TO BUILD THE LARGE BASIN ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF STONECUTTER'S, TOGETHER WITH RECLAMATION FOR OTHER MILITARY BUILDINGS, AS SHOWN IN THE MILITARY LAND PORTFOLIO. WE APOLOGISE THAT THIS WAS NOT MADE CLEAR EARLIER, THUS AVOIDING THE MISAPPREHENSION IN PARA. 3(C) OF PEKING TELNO. 1364 WE INTEND SIMPLY TO RELOCATE THE RN ENGINEERING AND SUPPORT FACILITIES TO THE EXISTING TYPHOON SHELTER ON THE NORTH SIDE OF STONECUTTER'S. SOME ADDITIONAL QUARTERS WILL ALSO BE PROVIDED ON THE ISLAND. WE WILL BE CARRYING OUT THE MINIMUM NECESSARY WORK TO PERMIT THE CONTINUED EFFICIENT OPERATION OF THE RN SQUADRON BETWEEN 1992 AND
1997.
4. WE ALSO NEED TO CLEAR UP THE MISAPPREHENSION ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF USING THE EAST END OF THE CENTRAL-WANCHAI RECLAMATION FOR RELOCATION OF TAMAR (PEKING TELNO. 1364, PARA. 5). OUR TELNO. 1554 SAID THAT THIS WAS AN IDEA WE HAD CONSIDERED, BUT HAD RULED OUT. WE CANNOT RELOCATE THE RN THERE, SINCE WORK WILL START THER ONLY IN 1991 AND COULD NOT BE COMPLETED IN TIME TO MOVE THE RN BY THE END OF 1992. BESIDES, THE AREA IS NEEDED FOR FACILITES, PRINCIPALLY THE CARGO WORKING AREA, FOR WHICH THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE LOCATION. IN THE LONGER TERM (POST 1997), WE MAY BE ABLE TO MOVE THESE FACILITES, BUT THERE IS NO WAY THAT WE COULD HAVE A REPLACEMENT TO HMS TAMAR FOR THE PLA UP AND RUNNING AT THE EAST END OF THE RECLAMATION BY MID-1997, EVEN IF WE WANTED TO.
WILSON
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CONFIDENTIAL