W(B)L 51-7406
DRAFT LETTER
From:
IArd Shepherd
CONFIDENTIAL
To
The Lord Brown, MBE.,
Minister of State,
Board of Trade.
NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN
RECEIVED IN ARCHIVES M.311
13 JAN 1969
HKKU
In our telephone conversation yesterday
afternoon about the Hong Kong Tunnel I
mentioned to you that, in view of Anthony
Royle's disclosure to me that an agreement with
the French would be signed on 10 January, we
would be telegraphing the Governor of Hong Kong
in an attempt to attain some firm information
on the stage reached in the Tunnel Company's
negotiations with the French. I attach a copy of that telegram (No. 18.. to Hong Kong).
2. This crossed the Governor's telegram
No. 19 (copy attached) which suggested that
the French equivalent of ECGD (COFACE) had
already agreed to give an export credit
guarantee in respect of the loan involved
but indicated that the Tunnel Company was not
yet irrevocably committed to the French
proposition. It also crossed a telegram from
the Senior Trade Commissioner in Hong Kong (EXCED No. 5) stating, in corroboration of
Royle's information, that an agreement between
the French finance house (Societe Generale)
and COFACE would be signed on 10 January
and that a public announcement would be made
on 13 January. We still do not know what is
the state of play between the Tunnel Company
If the information and the Societe Generale.
in these telegrams is true it is our reading
of the situation that the export credit
guarantee will have been fixed up by the
week-end between COFACE and Société Générale,
/ but the
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