THE Trade and Industry Department is seeking $50 million to help set up an applied research centre to promote projects with mainland research institutes, Trade and Industry Secretary T H Chau said yesterday.
Mr Chau said the $50 million would cover the initial setting-up costs of the centre.
'To maximise synergy and keep overheads low, consideration is being given to combining this with an existing initiative - the Applied Research and Development Fund Co,' he said.
'We shall be discussing further with the company what changes would be necessary to ensure that both the existing scheme and the new initiative can be operated effectively.' The Government was continuing to help industrialists climb the technology ladder, he said.
A major part of these efforts involves meeting the evolving requirements of industrialists for land and accommodation.
Initiatives include studies on a possible science park in Hong Kong and a new centre for fledgling hi-tech ventures.