CONFIDENTIAL
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024616
MDHIAN 1172
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INDEPENDENT UK BIDS TO BE PUT FORWARD WE WOULD
USUALLY SEEK TO PERSUADE LATE ARRIVALS TO STAND DOWN, UNLESS THERE WAS SCOPE FOR A CONSORTIUM. IN THE PRESENT CASE, THE VARIOUS OTHER COMPANIES WITH WHOM WE HAVE SPOKEN ABOUT HONG KONG PROJECTS RECENTLY HAVE READILY ACCEPTED THAT TRAFALGAR HOUSE AND COSTAINS HAVE A CERTAIN LEAD DERIVING FROM THEIR EARLY COMMITMENT TO THE PURSUIT OF THE FIXED LINK. IN GENERAL THE CIVIL CONSTRUCTION SECTOR TAKES A MORE PRAGMATIC APPOOACH TO THESE ISSUES THAT SOME OTHER SECTORS.
4.
THERE IS ONE OTHER GLOSS OF WHICH YOU SHOULD BE AWARE. CLEARLY ONE OF THE OBJECTIVES OF THE ANGLO/JAPANESE CONSORTIUM, FROM A UK PERSPECTIVE, IS TO FORM A PARTNERSHIP WHICH INCLUDES JAPANESE FINANCIAL AND OTHER CAPABILITIES, WHILE CONSTRAINING INDEPENDENT JAPANESE BIDS FOR AIRPORT-RELATED WORK. THE GOAL HAS BEEN TO SECURE WIDER JAPANESE COMMITMENT
TO THE ANGLO/JAPANESE CONSORTIUM: HENCE THE DISCUSSIONS WITH MITSUI, MITI, MFA. THOSE DISCUSSIONS HAVE TENDED NOT TO BE EXPLICIT ABOUT THE DISTINCTIONS TOUCHED ON IN PARAS 2 AND 3 ABOVE. IT IS CLEARLY NOT IN OUR INTEREST TO CLARIFY THE TERMS OF OUR BACKING THE ANGLO/JAPANESE CONSORTIUM SO PUBLICLY AS TO EFFECTIVELY ENCOURAGE WIDER JAPANESE COMPETITION FOR ALL THE OTHER KEY ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT. CONVERSELY WE MUST OF COURSE BE CAREFUL NOT TO USE LANGUAGE WHICH COULD LEAD TO SUBSEQUENT RECRIMINATION. WE DO NOT DOUBT THAT THERE WILL ULTIMATELY BE STRONG JAPANESE COMPETITION BUT WE SEE NO NEED TO CLARIFY THESE MATTERS UNNECESSARILY AS FAR AS JAPAN IS CONCERNED. YOU MIGHT CARE TO BEAR THIS POINT IN MIND.
5. AS FAR AS UK FIRMS ARE CONCERNED HOWEVER, OUR POSITION IS IN SUMMARY AS FOLLOWS. THIS IS A VERY BIG PROJECT, AND WE ARE KEEN TO HAVE STRONG UK BIDS FOR ALL THE KEY ELEMENTS. OF COURSE SOME FIRMS ARE AT AN ADVANCED STAGE IN TALKING TO US AND TO THE HKG ABOUT SPECIFIC ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT AND THEY HAVE, THROUGH THEIR EARLY INITIATIVES, WON THEMSELVES SOME PRIORITY IN HMG'S EYES. THIS WILL BE AN INTENSELY COMPETITIVE PROJECT, AND IT IS UNLIKELY TO BE IN THE UK'S INTERESTS FOR THERE TO BE INDEPENDENT UK BIDS FOR THE SAME ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT. SO WE WOULD VERY MUCH ENCOURAGE ALL INTERESTED UK FIRMS TO PURSUE WORK, BUT THEY WOULD DO BEST TO CONCENTRATE ON ELEMENTS WHICH DO NOT ALREADY HAVE STRONG UK INTEREST AND
COMMITMENT. THERE IS MORE THAN ENOUGH TO GO ROUND?
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CONFIDENTIAL