TNAG-0508-FCO40-573-Construction-of-underground-railway-system-in-Hong-Kong-1974 — Page 148

CGD

X

FRIORITY

IMMEDIATE

TELEGRAM

(a)

UNCLASSIFIED

RESTRICTED

COMERCIAL

OP

IN CONFIDENCE

CONFIDENTIAL

SECRET

Authorising K W COTTERILL

Officer

Date 21.2.74

(4) To:-

Time

(5) Divisional

EXECUTIVE

Reference GROUF

(6) Buyer

X

(2)(b)

EN CLAIR

BY

0.T.C. (See ?(b))

SAVING

"R_CODE"

CYPHER

X

E.C.G. 788A (Revised April 1968)

25

DZ

(3) NAMES/WORDS TO BE ENCODED IN

G.T.C.

PRIVATE ADDRESS TELEGRAM

(7) Telegram to Embassy or

Consulate or Trade Commlcrior.er etc. at

TOKYO.

(3) Repeat to

or use of D.3.A.0.

espatched

N

hrs.

T

lease return duplicate copy to:

port Credits Guarantee

Lepartment,

9/67 Gresham Atreet,

ordon, F.C.2.

(9)

Koosage1-

For McGhie from Cotterill ECGD.

Hong Kong Mass Transit. Cur MITI opposite number here, Kobayashi, has continued to enquire about possibility of participation by UK companies in this project. I discussed with Scott, GEC, who said they were always prepared to discuss with Mitsubishi or other Japanese company, but that such discussion would be without prejudice, and certainly would not indicate that GEC were falling over themselves to get a share.

2

I put it to Kobayashi that if there were to be discussions at company level we must be given details of whom our people might talk to. He stressed that Ozu in MITI had to move with some care in all this and impression remains that MITI are more keen for British participation than Japanese companies.

3

Following a suggestion we made to him Kobayashi has now asked that you should approach Ozu to discuss whether this might be taken further and if so by what means. Should be grateful if you could pursue this, maintaining fairly detached position reflecting GEC attitude as at paragraph 1

above.