TNAG-0334-FCO40-370-Visits-of-Secretary-of-State-for-Foreign-and-Commonwealth-Af-1972 — Page 153

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CONFIDENTIAL

HKK 22/5

Brief No

Secretary of State's Visit to Hong Kong

February, 1972

ECGD and Hong Kong for business with

Full ECGD facilities are available/to Hong

Kong. In 1969, ECGD guaranteed a loan made

available by Lloyd's Bank Ltd of £14.75 million

to finance the construction by Costain International

Limited and two other companies of a four-lane

road tunnel between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.

The basic price of the contracts is

£19.5

18 million

and the target completion date is September 1972.

UNDERGROUND RAILWAY SCHEME AND EGGD

also

A

3. ECGD have been approached by United Kingdom

commercial and financial interests concerning the

degree of support AD would consider for contracts

in connection with the Hong Kong Underground

Railway Scheme, the total cost of which is

estimated at c.£300 million (or £150 million if

only the initial scheme is constructed)

scheme is, however, still under consideration and

at present has gone no further in financial

expenditure than the provision of funds to

The whole

secure part of the proposed route against building

development which might prove costly in

compensation should a tunnel under it materialise.

WATER

3. The Hong Kong Government have decided to

construct two 20 million gallon desalination

plants to come into operation at the beginning

of 1974 and 1975 respectively. Each will cost

CONFIDENTIAL

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