International participation 'vital' to airport development

(HONG KONG, 27 May 1999) - The "level playing field" philosophy and the high degree of international participation were key elements in the successful completion of Hong Kong's new airport infrastructure, the Airport Authority (AA) said today.

"The same approach will be adopted by the AA in future business development at the airport," AA Chief Executive Officer Billy Lam Chung-lun said.

In an address to the Third Ministers' Forum on Infrastructure Development of the Asia-Pacific Region, Mr Lam said that inviting bids from the world's best companies ensured that Hong Kong taxpayers got high quality, value-for-money facilities that were completed on time and within budget. Mr Lam described to the visiting delegates the details and strategies behind Hong Kong's largest civil works project, the 10 related infrastructure projects including Hong Kong International Airport that were collectively known as the Airport Core Programme.

"Contractors and consultants from 16 different countries in Asia, Europe, North America, Australasia and South Africa, plus mainland Chinese and Hong Kong-based firms, were involved in the airport project where a level playing field philosophy was applied in the award of all contracts," Mr Lam said. "Such a philosophy also helped in ensuring we got value for money."

The Authority continues to apply the same principles to commercial operations at Hong Kong International Airport.

"As in the award of construction contracts, we operated a similar level playing field philosophy when it came to the award of our commercial contracts," Mr Lam said.

"The Authority awarded all franchises and agreements for aviation support services to qualified private sector companies from all over the world on a fair and non-discriminatory basis for periods ranging from five to 20 years. The same philosophy also applied to the tenancy awarded to 144 shops in the passenger terminal building.

"The Authority will continue to invite worldwide participation in the next stage of our commercial development which includes a logistics centre, exhibition centre, pier and other facilities and services."

Ref. PR-431