More than 10 billion yuan (MOP12.8 billion or US$1.6 billion) is to be invested in the Galaxy entertainment Group’s (GEG) Hengqin project according to Chinese media Macau Daily. The newspaper reported that the project – to be located in the southwest of Hengqin Island – will feature a sports leisure vacation resort. The planned area occupies 2.74 square kilometres, with the construction area 250,000 square kilometres. The Chinese media also reported last December that the company’s deputy chairman, Francis Lui Yiu-tung, said that construction will begin this year and that the work will be undertaken in three phases. It is expected to take seven to eight years to finish. Another project showcased in the Hengqin Free Trade Zone inauguration ceremony was the Hengqin Border Service Area funded by the Shun Tak Group. The land parcel located with direct access to the port is to be serviced by the Hengqin and Macau light rail, together with the extension of Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity Rail in the future, according to the company. The 23,834 square metre site was acquired by the company in July 2013 through listing-for-sale held by the Zhuhai Land and House Property Exchange Centre for a consideration of 721 million yuan. The plan to develop the facility comprising office, hotel, commercial and serviced apartments is now underway with site works commencing in August 2014; it is expected to be operational in 2018. “The Hengqin integrated development is a very unique project for us. We see it as an epitome of the synergistic relationship between Macau and Hengqin, representing the future of tourism development of this region,” said Pansy Ho, Managing Director of Shun Tak Holdings Limited last year in a press release. “The integrated development shall fulfil a lynchpin role in a multiple-stop itinerary.” The joint venture agreement between Shun Tak and Perennial Hengqin Investment Group Ptd. Ltd. announced in January 2014 said it was for a consideration of approximately 263 million yuan, and that Shun Tak and its partner will jointly develop the project on a 70:30 basis. Hengqin taking off The Hengqin New Area Free Trade Zone was officially inaugurated yesterday. The managing director of the area, Niu Jing, said with the establishment of the FTZ and the industrial park, more Macau small and medium-sized enterprises can enjoy easier access to Hengqin, providing more opportunities for Macau’s diversified development. It is believed that the Free Trade Zone will open up transport, finance, travel and other sectors to Hong Kong and Macau investors, with an increasing number of investment requirements removed or relaxed. Service providers from the SARs will be allowed to set up wholly owned international shipping companies in the pilot zone. As at Tuesday, some 866 financial institutions, with a capital of 137.3 billion yuan had registered in Hegnqin, while 407 companies from the SARs had also joined in the newly inaugurated Free Trade Zone – 131 from Hong Kong and 276 from Macau. Overall, some 8,477 companies have registered in Hengqin, over 400 of them last month. Hengqin New Area FTZ is a part of the newly formed Guangdong FTZ which occupies 116 square metres, taking in parts of Guangzhou’s Nansha New Area, Qianhai and Shekou in Shenzhen, and Hengqin in Zhuhai. Hengqin New Area, located in the Zhuhai Special Economic Zone, is only a stone’s throw from Macau. As part of the One Country, Two Systems policy, the central government is trying to integrate the economies of Hong Kong, Macau and Mainland China. Hengqin is directly across the water from Macau, and as such is a pilot zone for integration.
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