Hutchison Whampoa has signed a letter of intent with Xiamen Harbour Bureau to buy at least 49 per cent of two berths at Haican, a port official says.
Yang Jinlai , secretary of the bureau's party committee, said a tentative agreement was reached during a visit to Hong Kong last month by the bureau's chief.
He said he expected a further agreement would be signed at the Fujian Economic Co-operation and Foreign Trade Symposium, which opens on Sunday in Xiamen.
He said 800 million yuan (about HK$744.4 million) had been invested in the two berths, including port equipment.
Mr Yang said further negotiations were needed to determine the stakes of Hutchison Whampoa and Xiamen.
The Chinese side wishes to keep a 51 per cent stake in the berths.
Construction work on the two berths had been completed and they were now undergoing trial operation, Mr Yang said. One of the berths is for general cargo and can handle vessels of 25,000 deadweight tonnes (dwt), while the second is for container vessels up to 30,000 dwt.
