A government official offered not to penalise the Chinachem Group for the late completion of a contract in return for a promise that the company would not take the matter to court, a court heard yesterday.
Executive Council Convenor Leung Chun-ying told the Court of First Instance that the former secretary for planning, environment and lands, Bowen Leung Po-wing, made the offer after they met by chance in Beijing on August 11, 1996.
Mr Leung, who had been asked to act as a consultant, said he warned Bowen Leung Chinachem was considering launching a lawsuit against the Government for threatening to take back the Tsuen Wan site over the failure to finish on time.
He said Bowen Leung had mentioned asking Chinachem to erect the best, rather than the tallest building, and said the Government would give the company enough time to finish the project with no penalty.
Mr Leung was testifying in Chinachem chairwoman Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum's legal battle against the Government, which has charged Chinachem more than $550 million in penalties for late completion of the project. Ms Wang had planned to construct the world's tallest building on the site, the 108-storey, 522-metre Nina Tower. But the project fell through after the Government imposed a height limit of 324 metres because the site was 19.5km from Chek Lap Kok.
Chinachem is seeking a declaration that it should not be held responsible for construction delays and penalties.
