TNAG-2621-FCO40-3812-Visits-by-Alastair-Goodlad--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-an-1992 — Page 146

UNCLASSIFIED

(B) BLACK POINT POWER STATION. A POUNDS STR 1.4 BILLION CONTACT TO BE AWARDED BY CHINA LIGHT AND POWER BEFORE THE END OF THIS YEAR. GEC ALSTHOM (UK/FRANCE) AND SIEMENS (GERMANY) ARE IN CONTENTION. HISTORICALLY CHINA LIGHT AND POWER HAVE ALWAYS BOUGHT FROM GEC WHO HAVE PROVIDED AN EXCELLENT SERVICE. GEC-A SHOULD THEREFORE BE WELL PLACED TO WIN THIS CONTRACT.

(C) KWAI CHUNG CONTAINER TERMINAL 9: THIS IS WORTH ABOUT POUNDS STR 600 MILLION. BRITISH FIRMS HAVE NOT SECURED ANY MAJOR CONTRACTS AT THE CONTAINER PORT IN THE PAST, BUT WITH MANY MORE BRITISH COMPANIES ON THE GROUND FOR NEW AIRPORT RELATED PROJECTS THE UK MIGHT BE BETTER PLACED TO WIN SOME BUSINESS.

(D) PROJECTS OUTSIDE HONG KONG. DECISIONS ARE TAKEN IN HONG KONG ON SOME VERY LARGE PROJECTS ELSEWHERE IN THE REGION, USUALLY BECAUSE THEY ARE FINANCED BY HONG KONG BUSINESSMEN. A HONG KONG COMPANY CHOPEWELL) HAS STARTED WORK ON THE BANGKOK MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY SYSTEM. THIS PROJECT OFFERS HUGE OPPORTUNITIES TO BRITISH COMPANIES, NONE LESS IN VALUE THAN HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF POUNDS. THE SAME COMPANY IS EMBARKING ON POWER STATION PROJECTS IN THE PHILIPPINES AND MALAYSIA. OF EQUAL SIGNIFICANCE, HONG KONG'S WHARF COMPANY AND THE NEW WORLD GROUP ARE CONSIDERING BUILDING POWER STATIONS, ROAD AND RAIL LINKS AND CONTAINER TERMINALS IN SOUTHERN CHINA. A BASE IN HONG KONG HAS OFTEN PROVED AN INVALUABLE ASSET TO UK COMPANIES SECURING BUSINESS IN SOUTH CHINA. RECENT EXAMPLES OF MAJOR BUSINESS IN SOUTH CHINA INCLUDE THE YUEYANG POWER STATION DUE TO BE OPENED THIS SUMMER, THE CONVENTIONAL ISLAND OF THE DAYA BAY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, AND THE GUANGZHOU METRO PRJECT, WHERE HONG KONG'S OWN BRITISH BUILT SYSTEM IS A CONSIDERABLE SELLING POINT.

CONCLUSION.

6.

THE SCALE, THE SIZE, AND THE SPEED AT WHICH OPPORTUNITIES WILL ARISE IN HONG KONG IS PROBABLY UNEQUALED ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD AT PRESENT. THE WORD IS SPREADING AND MORE BRITISH BUSINESS VISITORS ARE VISITING HONG KONG THAN BEFORE. ON REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, BRITISH COMPANIES ARE MOSTLY ONLY PLAYING A MODEST ROLE STILL.