Friday, January 1, 2010

Work starts on Tianjin eco-industrial park

KEPPEL Group’s joint venture that is managing the bilateral Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City has begun development on a 130-ha Eco-Industrial Park (EIP), located within the eco-city.

The development will cost about four billion yuan (S$0.8 billion) to develop and can draw in four billion yuan worth of investments and create about 10,000 jobs when completed.

The eco-city is managed and developed by Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Co (SSTEC) – a 50-50 joint venture between a Chinese consortium led by Tianjin TEDA Investment Holding Co and a Singapore consortium led by the Keppel Group.

The SSTEC also inked a 13 billion yuan deal to build a 1.4 million sq m integrated eco community for nearly 13,000 households in the eco-city, as well as a ‘play’ hub for residents and visitors.

The SSTEC officially started work on the EIP yesterday. The first phase of work will be the construction of more than 220,000 sq m of ready-built factories on a 15-ha plot.

These factories, with a typical size of 3,000-5,000 sq m built-up area, will be made available for lease or sale.

Construction of the ready-built factories will commence in phases, starting in the second quarter of this year.

The SSTEC said that the factories will satisfy strong market demand from local and foreign investors who have expressed interest in establishing manufacturing facilities to serve the eco-city and the surrounding market.

The EIP, located at the northern region of the eco-city, is meant to be the first of its kind eco-industrial park in China. It’s positioned to be the premier eco manufacturing base for eco investors in the Bohai Rim area and to be built completely in compliance to the eco-city’s green building standards.

The building and construction of the park will adopt eco-friendly strategies such as the optimisation of building layouts, the utilisation of renewable energy and suitable building materials, the recycling of water and waste, the provision of green spaces and the practice of environmentally-friendly construction methods.

The EIP will be home to light clean industries from green business clusters including clean energy, green building, green transport, clean water, clean waste management and clean environment.

It’s believed that these industries can, using the eco-city as a base, tap on growing eco-business opportunities in fast-growing Tianjin Binhai New Area – within which the eco-city is located – and northern China.

Together with the Eco-Business Park, launched in June last year, the EIP is expected to create about 25,000 job opportunities, attract new residents to the eco-city and generate significant economic spin-offs.

The eco-city itself is meant to be a sustainable community for 350,000 residents, when completed.

In related news, the SSTEC also inked an 13 billion yuan agreement with Farglory Land Beijing, Taiwan’s largest developer, to build a 1.4 million sq m integrated eco community for nearly 13,000 households in the eco-city, as well as a ‘play’ hub for residents and visitors.

It aims to convert the site of an old fishing village, the Qing Tuo Zi (QTZ) village, to an upmarket commercial development of about 20 ha – which will make it the largest commercial development as well as the cultural centre of the eco-city.

Goh Chye Boon, CEO of SSTEC said: ‘We are confident that this collaboration with Farglory to develop the QTZ village will create an unique value proposition that will not only cater to the needs of our residents but also draw visitors from near and far to become one of the eco-city’s main tourist attractions.’

‘This infusion of modern ideas and solutions with the Chinese rich tradition of harmonious living will create an integrated commercial and residential development that will stand out from the other developments of the eco-city and Tianjin Binhai New Area,’ he added.

Source: Business Times, 1 Jan 2010

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