Growing Hengqin gets tunnel - THE Big Hengqin Mountain Tunnel holes were connected on Thursday, the same day keys were delivered to the first-group businesses at the Hengqin Financial Industry Service Base first phase in the Shizimen Central Business District (CBD).
Li Jia, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Provincial Committee and secretary of the Municipal CPC Committee, and other senior city officials participated in both events. They also launched operation of Zhuhai Finance Investment Holdings co ltd.
The 2,320m tunnel has four lanes with designated speed of 60kmph and cost of 368 million yuan ($57.82 million). It will come into operation at the end of the year.
Encompassing nine office buildings and two support facilities, the first-phase base now has 11 businesses including the Bank of China, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, China Mobile and Hong Kong Baptist University. It will begin to provide financial services, high-calibre personnel exchanges and training and other services at the end of the year.
The Shizimen CBD convention, exhibition and business mix first-phase (BT) project garnered 4.2 billion yuan ($660 million) of bank loans from the Agricultural Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Export-Import Bank of China a week ago Friday.
Covering 269,000sqm with floor space of 1 million square metres, the cluster is an international urban complex with the most complete functions and highest construction level in the country. It will include the Zhuhai International Convention Centre, Zhuhai International Exhibition Centre first phase, St Regis and Sheraton Hotels & Resorts -- two world-renowned five-star brands under Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc, and related support facilities. The facilities will begin operations next year.
Executive Vice Mayor Liu Xiaolong and city officials and financial executives were at the signing ceremony.
Construction funds pledged
THE city government, Hengqin New Area Administrative Committee and Gree Group respectively signed a strategic partnership agreement worth 90 billion yuan ($14.14 billion) with China Construction Bank Guangdong Branch on Thursday.
The agreement stipulates that the bank will fully support Zhuhai’s economic construction with focus on New Countryside, strategic emerging industries, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), cultural industry, low-income housing, livelihood, infrastructure and other aspects. During the 12th Five-Year Plan period, the bank will provide at least 50 billion yuan ($7.86 billion) in financial support for the municipal government and at least 30 billion yuan ($4.7 billion) or other currencies of the same value for enterprises in Hengqin New Area.
The strategic partnership agreement between the bank and Gree Group concerns 10 billion yuan ($1.57 billion) of all-round cooperation.
Li Jia, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Provincial Committee and secretary of the Municipal CPC Committee; Mayor He Ningka and Executive Vice Mayor Liu Xiaolong, along with Jin Yanmin, Party secretary and president of China Construction Bank Guangdong Branch, and other officials and executives were at the signing ceremony.
Landscape upgrade coming
THE Urban Utilities, Landscaping & Forestry Bureau announced last Monday that nearly 200 million yuan ($31.4 million) will be spent landscaping trunk roads, planting trees at portal areas, improving city parks and increasing flower species throughout the city in the next two years.
Florals such as broad-leaf crape myrtle, bougainvillea and oleander will be planted along 15 trunk roads including Jiuzhou Avenue, Lovers Avenue, Meihua Road, Gangwan Avenue, Yingbin Road, Nanwan Avenue, Fenghuang Road, Ningxi Road and Yuehai Road.
Rose and crape myrtle, ceiba and other floral gardens will be created near Zhuhai Airport and the Jiangmen-Zhuhai Expressway North Hezhou entry to Zhuhai. Flowering trees and shrubs will be planted along the 4.9km road between Xiazha Checkpoint and the Jinding traffic island.
Different species of flowers will be planted in front of the Grand Bay View Hotel, Jiuzhou Garden, Viewing-Macao Platform, Haibin Park and opposite the Shizimen CBD and other sites. In addition, seasonal flowers will be planted in the centre island and on both sides of major routes including Jingshan, Changsheng, Shuiwan, Haibin and Santaishi roads.
Rossini on the rise
THE Zhuhai Rossini Watch Industry Base came into operation in the Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone last Monday, the company’s 28th anniversary.
Founded in 1984, Rossini Watch is the first Sino-foreign joint venture in the industry and the only one on the list of Top 500 Asian Brands. It has topped the sales of like products for ten successive years from 2002 to 2011.
Rossini Industrial Park, with 23,000sqm and first-phase area of 20,000sqm, will achieve four times the capacity of the old site in Jida, whose expansion was initiated in 2009. The largest watch culture industrial park in Guangdong, it will serve as a time-themed industrial scenic spot showcasing traditional Chinese timing culture and the complete process of modern watch manufacturing. The Watch Museum and industrial tourism is to open at the end of the month.
Vice Mayor Liu Jiawan, other city officials and Rossini General Manager Shang Jianguang were at the launch ceremony.
-Zhuhai Daily
