FRIDAY, JULY 17, 1992
ONLY TWO CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS OUT OF 15 HAD GONE SO FAR TO UK COMPANIES, AND WHILE BRITISH FIRMS HAD BEEN AWARDED MORE CONSULTANCY WORK, MANY OF THEM WERE FIRMS WHICH HAD BEEN ESTABLISHED IN HONG KONG FOR MANY YEARS.
SIR DAVID SAID BUILDING THE ACP PROJECTS AS COST EFFECTIVELY AS POSSIBLE MUST BE THE OVERALL OBJECTIVE OF ALL CONCERNED, IN LINE WITH THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU) SIGNED BY THE PRIME MINISTERS OF BRITAIN AND CHINA LAST YEAR.
HE ALSO SAID CHINA WAS INVOLVED IN SOME OF THE WORKS CONTRACTS AND THIS PARTICIPATION WAS WELCOME, AS WERE CHINA'S OTHER INVESTMENTS IN HONG KONG.
"THAT DEMONSTRATES THE PRC'S COMMERCIAL INTEREST IN THE ACP, ECHOING THE POLITICAL COMMITMENT MADE WHEN THE PRIME MINISTERS SIGNED THE MOU.
"
AHEAD, WITHIN
TALKS WERE NOW BEING HELD WITH CHINA ON THE WAY THE TERMS OF THE MOU, ON THE AIRPORT AND THE AIRPORT RAILWAY, HE SAID.
THE AIRPORT COMMITTEE HAD MET YESTERDAY AND THERE WOULD BE
MORE TALKS.
"WE NEED TO MOVE TO A SITUATION WITH CHINA WHERE THE ACP CAN GO NOT GOOD AHEAD, UNHAMPERED BY DOUBTS AND UNCERTAINTY. UNCERTAINTY IS FOR ANY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE OR ANY COMMUNITY.
"IT IS IMPORTANT THEREFORE THAT WE REMOVE THE UNCERTAINTY SURROUNDING THE ACP BY REACHING FULL AGREEMENTS ON ALL THE OUTSTANDING ACP ISSUES AGREEMENTS WHICH ARE WORKABLE AND WHICH LAST THROUGH THE LIFETIME OF THE PROJECTS. THIS WILL ALLOW US TO AHEAD STEADILY, AND ON A FINANCIALLY PRUDENT BASIS," SIR DAVID SAID.
WILL MOVE
IN HIS SPEECH, MR YEUNG EMPHASISED THE SUBSTANTIAL RETURN THE ITS GOVERNMENT EXPECTED TO RECEIVE, IN THE MEDIUM AND LONG TERM, FROM INVESTMENT IN THE ACP.
THE RETURN WOULD INCLUDE DIVIDENDS ON THE GOVERNMENT'S INJECTIONS OF EQUITY INTO THE AIRPORT AUTHORITY AND THE MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY CORPORATION AS WELL AS RECEIPTS OF LAND PREMIUM, PROFITS AND RATES.
AIRPORT,
TAX
THE
YEAR "WE ESTIMATE THAT, BY THE
2020, THE NEW LANTAU FIXED CROSSING AND THE AIRPORT RAILWAY WILL HAVE GENERATED FOR THE GOVERNMENT ADDITIONAL INCOME TOTALLING SOME $300 BILLION.
"MORE IMPORTANTLY, IF WE TAKE OUR INVESTMENT IN THOSE ELEMENTS OF THE ACP DIRECTLY REQUIRED TO SUPPORT THE NEW AIRPORT, THE INTERNAL RATE OF RETURN TO THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE CLOSE TO
CENT BY 2020 AND CLOSE TO 15 PER CENT BY 2040.
12 PER
"THESE RATES OF RETURN ARE CONSERVATIVE, BECAUSE THEY TAKE INTO ACCOUNT MAJOR BUT AS YET UNQUANTIFIABLE SOURCES OF SUCH AS LAND PREMIUM FROM THE DEVELOPMENT OF TUNG CHUNG REDEVELOPMENT OF THE KAI TAK AREA. SUFFICE IT TO SAY THAT THE BY ANY STANDARDS, A SOUND INVESTMENT," HE SAID.
DO NOT REVENUE. OR THE ACP IS
/NOTING THAT