Officials reject cruise terminal proposals
The government has rejected six proposals by developers for a temporary cruise terminal, effectively delaying the building of the facility for two years.
Sources familiar with the project said the government would instead build a permanent terminal itself at Kai Tak under the draft blueprint unveiled last week for developing the former airport site.
A senior government source said the proposals, submitted in response to an invitation for expressions of interest last year, were rejected because of concerns about their feasibility.
'There are questions surrounding the feasibility of each of the six proposals and they will not be worked out in the near future,' the source said. As a result, the government had opted to speed up the permanent cruise terminal project.
The move will spare the government from getting entangled with the consortiums, the source said.
The temporary facility was intended to meet the city's demand for two to four years from 2009. Under the Kai Tak plan, the terminal will not be in operation until 2011.
Those who submitted expressions of interest include developers Cheung Kong (Holdings), Henderson Land and Sino Land. Their proposed locations were close to their properties or assets.
Another government official said it would be easier politically to go straight into developing a government facility. '[Otherwise] the government would be criticised for colluding with whichever developer's proposal was adopted,' he said.
The business community has been appealing for a new cruise terminal for more than 10 years and urging the government to make a decision as swiftly as possible.
The government had said it would consider all suggestions, but if none was satisfactory, it would proceed with Kai Tak.
Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong lawmaker Chan Kam-lam said: 'It does not matter whether the terminal is built by the government or through public tender. Kai Tak is a good location for the cruises.'
'The tourism industry has longed for a world-class cruise terminal for many years and Kai Tak is the only place with expansion potential for the long term,' the government said in the Kai Tak planning review released last Friday.
The government said the Kai Tak terminal would have two berths for cruise ships over 50,000 tonnes.
The Town Planning Board is expected to endorse the Kai Tak blueprint by early next year, with construction due to begin in 2010.
But the government plans to fast track the terminal project. 'Our objective is to have a cruise terminal at Kai Tak in 2011,' the source said.
According to a cruise industry report, the number of passengers in Northeast Asia is expected to grow from an estimated 440,000 in 2005 to 720,000 by 2010.
