CONFIDENTIAL
FM BTC HONG KONG
TO PRIORITY DTI
TELNO INTRA 4
OF 07110OZ JANUARY 91
INFO PRIORITY FCO, ECGD
INFO ROUTINE TOKYO, SEOUL
CONFIDENTIAL
022266
MDLIAN 8713
5
HKA 182/3
TOP COPY Q DIST?
FOR HALL HEAD OR PEP
183
HKB 182/3
(1991)
MY TELNO OTTER 239 OF 18 DECEMBER: HONG KONG AIRPORT PROJECT: MAIN BRIDGE CONTRACT
1. IN MY TUR I REPORTED THAT A TEAM OF THREE, CONSISTING OF EXPERTS FROM JAPAN, USA AND THE UK, HAD BEEN APPOINTED BY THE HONG KONG ADMINISTRATION TO ASSESS THE BIDS FOR THE MAIN BRIDGE CONTRACT. THE BRITISH MEMBER OF THE TEAM IS MALCOLM FLETCHER, CHAIRMAN OF HALCROW. THEY ARE MEETING IN HONG KONG THIS WEEK. I HAVE MADE CONTACT WITH FLETCHER AND HAD A PRIVATE DISCUSSION WITH HIM AT MY APARTMENT ON 6 JANUARY.
2. HE WAS CAUTIOUS IN WHAT HE WAS PREPARED TO REVEAL, BUT TWO ITEMS OF SIGNIFICANCE EMERGED. HE SAID THE NEWSPAPER ACCOUNT OF THE BIDS, REPORTED IN MY TELNO INTRA 2 OF 3 JANUARY, WAS NOT ACCURATE. HE CONFIRMED THAT THE KOREANS HAD PUT IN THE LOWEST BID, BUT SAID THE TRAFALGAR HOUSE GROUP WAS NOT THE HIGHEST. HE WAS NOT PREPARED TO GO ANY FURTHER THAN THIS.
3. HE ALSO SAID THAT THE BIDS WERE ALL RELATIVELY CLEAN' AND UNCOMPLICATED. HIS GROUP HAD THEREFORE RECOMMENDED TO THE ADMINISTRATION THAT IT NEED NOT TAKE UNTIL MAY TO EVALUATE THE BIDS, WHICH IS THE CURRENT TARGET DATE. A RECOMMENDATION COULD BE READY BY MARCH AND AN ANNOUNCEMENT MADE THEN. THEY HAD TOLD THE ADMINISTRATION THAT THE TIME SAVED WOULD BE INVALUABLE TO THE
WINNING CONTRACTOR.
4. FLETCHER ALSO SAID THAT IN ADDITION TO HIS GROUP, THE BIDS WERE BEING ASSESSED INDEPENDENTLY AND SEPARATELY BY THE HONG KONG ADMINISTRATION, MOTT MCDONALD, AND BY A FURTHER SMALL BRITISH CONSULTANCY, FLINT AND NEIL, WHO ARE BRIDGE DESIGN SPECIALIST AND I UNDERSTAND UK BASED.
5. FLETCHER CONFIRMED THAT ALL THE BIDS WERE ROUGHLY WITHIN THE
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CONFIDENTIAL