Learn Chinese online - Ascendas plans $458m IT park in Hangzhou

BIZCHINA / Overseas Investment

Ascendas plans $458m IT park in Hangzhou

By Zheng Lifei (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-06 10:05

Ascendas, one of Asia's largest developers of business properties, said
yesterday it has clinched a deal with a local partner to develop a $458
million IT park in Hangzhou, which will be its single largest investment
in China.

Ascendas will develop the IT park with Hangzhou Economic Development Area
General North Co, the developer of the Hangzhou Economic Development Area
(HEDA), where the park will be located.

The Singaporean real estate developer will own 80 percent of the
Singapore-Hangzhou Science and Technology Park, according to an agreement
signed between two sides.

The park, which will cover about 43 hectares and have some 752,250 square
meters of developed property when completely built, will position itself
as a hub for service industries including business process outsourcing
(BPO) and information technology outsourcing, as well as for research and
development activities.

The Hangzhou facility will be the fourth IT park and the largest in terms
of investment that Ascendas has developed in the country, according to
Tay Eng Kiat, Ascendas China CEO.

Its other projects are in Xi'an, Dalian and Nanjing, all of which are
major BPO bases in China.

Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province, is one of the 11
cities designated by the Ministry of Commerce as BPO hubs in the country.

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"We will bring to Hangzhou our successful IT park experience from India,
where we have helped to propel the growth of Bangalore as the cradle of
India's BPO industry," said Chong Siak Ching, president and CEO of
Ascendas.

Ascendas now has seven IT parks in five Indian cities, Chong said, where
a total of more than 40,000 IT professionals work.

The company is planning to triple the investment it has made in China
since 1995 over the next five years to a total of $1.64 billion, Chong
told China Daily earlier this year.

The developer, which has assets worth $3.3 billion under its management,
now has a presence in 10 cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai and
Suzhou.

HEDA, approved by the State Council and established in 1993, is one of 11
national-level software parks in China.

Hangzhou Economic Development Area General North Co, with registered
capital of 160 million yuan, mainly focuses on infrastructure
construction and management at HEDA.

Its subsidiary Hangxin Investment Co Ltd is responsible for the initial
development of the first phase of the park.

Ascendas will manage the Hangzhou park over a range of responsibilities,
including project management, marketing, leasing, advertising and
corporate services.

When completed, the park will be able to house a working population of
30,000 to 50,000 people.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)

Learn Chinese online

Chinese School - China pledges to invest 62b yuan in rural projects

BIZCHINA / Center

China pledges to invest 62b yuan in rural projects

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-07-04 13:57

Chinese government will invest about 62 billion yuan (US$8.16 billion) in
rural infrastructure this year, the National Development and Reform
Commission has announced.

The investment would target projects involving road construction, power
generation and water conservancy, and also poverty reduction and
community facilities, according to the commission.

The sum is 9 billion yuan more than budgeted for the previous year, said
the commission in a guide for government investment in rural areas for
2007.

The guide said the central government had invested more than 60 billion
yuan in the countryside in 2006, and more than 36 billion yuan were
channeled to grain production, education, sanitation and poverty
reduction, which are directly linked to farmers production and living
standards.

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The country's grain output reached 497.46 million tons in 2006, an
increase of 13.44 million tons, according to the commission.

The central government would put more investment of the 62 billion yuan
into sectors directly linked to production and living standards,
according to the investment guide.

And about 10 billion yuan would be devoted to the modernization of the
agricultural sector this year.

The commission said the guide was intended to ensure more investment
would be made in the countryside and western China with a view to
achieving balanced development within the country.

The guide is also aimed at bringing more social funds to rural areas and
encouraging public supervision over government investment.

The commission published the investment guide for the first time in 2006.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)

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Chinese School - GSK to build research centers in Shanghai

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BIZCHINA / Center

GSK to build research centers in Shanghai

By Liu Baijia (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-03 09:37

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said yesterday that it will spend $40 million this
year to start a research facility in Shanghai that will grow into one of
its largest research centers globally.

The world's second-largest pharmaceutical company has begun to look for a
research facility location in the city and aims to recruit 50 to 100 top
international scientists.

Its initial investment of $40 million in 2007 is projected to grow even
larger in the coming years, as the company plans to have 1,000 scientists
working at the facility in 10 years.

It is the latest trend for multinational pharmaceutical companies, which
have begun to invest heavily in research and development in China. It is
also the first multinational pharmaceutical company with plans to
undertake an entire range of research in the nation. Others do only part
of their research, such as drug discovery or clinical trials, in the
country.

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"China will not only be famous as the world's factory, but also attract
(global attention) to its research and development for the pharmaceutical
industry," said Amy Huang, president of GSK operations on the Chinese
mainland and Hong Kong.

Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis announced last November that it will
build its eighth global research center in China at an investment of $100
million.

Three months ago, US drugmaker Elli Lilly committed the same amount for
research in the world's most populous market.

It also established a venture fund to invest in domestic drug developers,
including a first investment of $10 million in a local firm.

"The most important factor is access to scientific talent," said Perry
Nisen, senior vice-president of clinical pharmacology and discovery
medicine with London-based GSK.

After studying India and South Korea, the pharmaceutical giant finally
selected Shanghai due to its number and quality of universities and
hospitals and the density of foreign drug makers in the city, as well as
its attraction to overseas scientists.

It is estimated that more than 1 million Chinese went overseas to study
in the past 28 years, with 275,000 who have returned to begin their
careers in the world's fastest-growing economy.

The GSK center will be the only one for the company focusing on
neurodegenerative disorders like Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease
and multiple sclerosis.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)

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