TNAG-2981-FCO40-1473-Guangdong-nuclear-power-station-project-1982 — Page 60

From the Private Secretary

Dear fonathan,

CONFIDENTIAL

DILI

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OROIT

M. Monis

10 DOWNING STREET

HIR 16671

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Ps/hord Belsten

PSIPUS Mr. Giffard M. Donald Mr. Gillmore HCGD

VED TRED

2 November 1982

7 flasz/4

GUANGDONG NUCLEAR POWER PROJECT

The Prime Minister has seen Mr. Jenkin's minute of 29 October on this subject.

WED

NAD

See 164

Mrs. Thatcher minuted that she was content that Vice-Minister Li Peng should be invited to London in November. She commented further that she was loath to give up the idea of Anglo/US co-operation on this project since she feared that the French aim would be to obtain the whole project for themselves.

There was some discussion of this matter at yesterday's briefing meeting for the Anglo/French Summit. The Prime Minister reiterated her concern that the French would try to secure the whole project. Your Secretary of State pointed out that if we could reach agreement with the French on pursuing the project jointly, we should avoid competitive bidding between the United Kingdom and France. The French now said that they had been asked to tender separately for both the nuclear and conventional work. If we were to preserve the possibility of obtaining work for British industry, we should have to fight very hard. therefore recommended that at the Anglo/French Summit we should take the line that the project presented an opportunity for constructive Anglo/French partnership and we should agree how to frame a joint project. This approach would not necessarily rule out the American option. We should not exclude this possibility unless and until we had arrived at a satisfactory arrangement with the French. The Prime Minister indicated that she was content to speak accordingly in Paris.

I am copying this letter to John Holmes (Foreign and Commonwealth Office), John Kerr (HM Treasury), Julian West (Department of Energy), John Rhodes (Department of Trade), John Gieve (Chief Secretary's Office) and Richard Hatfield (Cabinet Office).

He

Your eve

Jonathan Spencer, Esq., Department of Industry.

CONFIDENTIA!

Lol Cola.

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