Chinese investors will pump millions of pounds into the £800m development of Manchester's Airport City which is hoped will strengthen business links between Britain and the world's second largest economy.
Beijing Construction Engineering Group (BCEG) has agreed a joint venture with Manchester Airports Group (MAG), UK construction group Carillion, and the Greater Manchester Pension Fund on the development which is expected to create around 16,000 new jobs and attract international businesses.
The deal was announced by the chancellor, George Osborne, who is in China on a five-day trade mission.
The area surrounding Manchester airport will become Britain's first "airport city" and include 5m sq ft of offices, hotels, advanced manufacturing space, logistics and warehousing.
MAG began its search for joint venture partners at the end of 2012 and said it had sought companies which could bring global development expertise as well as access to international tenants and financing capabilities. It is hoped the scheme will compete with European airport city developments such as in Barcelona and Amsterdam.
"The inclusion of BCEG is significant because as a group, we have been keen to forge greater links with the far east and this gives us an opportunity to strengthen vital business links with China," said Charlie Cornish, chief executive of MAG.
Outline planning permission for the project was granted at the beginning of 2013, and construction work is expected to start by the end of the year. The scheme will be built over the next 15 years.
Xing Yan, managing director of BCEG International, said the deal in Manchester reflected the target set by the UK and China to increase bilateral trade to $100bn (£62.3bn) by 2015.
"We see our involvement in Airport City as an extension of the memorandum of understanding between China and the UK, where we have been looking to further explore joint infrastructure opportunities for some time," he said.
Argent, which is leading the regeneration of King's Cross in London, has been appointed by the joint venture as development manager. Carillion announced separately that it expected to invest up to £12m of equity into the project, as well as delivering up to £580m of construction work.
theguardian.com
Beijing Construction Engineering Group (BCEG) has agreed a joint venture with Manchester Airports Group (MAG), UK construction group Carillion, and the Greater Manchester Pension Fund on the development which is expected to create around 16,000 new jobs and attract international businesses.
The deal was announced by the chancellor, George Osborne, who is in China on a five-day trade mission.
The area surrounding Manchester airport will become Britain's first "airport city" and include 5m sq ft of offices, hotels, advanced manufacturing space, logistics and warehousing.
MAG began its search for joint venture partners at the end of 2012 and said it had sought companies which could bring global development expertise as well as access to international tenants and financing capabilities. It is hoped the scheme will compete with European airport city developments such as in Barcelona and Amsterdam.
"The inclusion of BCEG is significant because as a group, we have been keen to forge greater links with the far east and this gives us an opportunity to strengthen vital business links with China," said Charlie Cornish, chief executive of MAG.
Outline planning permission for the project was granted at the beginning of 2013, and construction work is expected to start by the end of the year. The scheme will be built over the next 15 years.
Xing Yan, managing director of BCEG International, said the deal in Manchester reflected the target set by the UK and China to increase bilateral trade to $100bn (£62.3bn) by 2015.
"We see our involvement in Airport City as an extension of the memorandum of understanding between China and the UK, where we have been looking to further explore joint infrastructure opportunities for some time," he said.
Argent, which is leading the regeneration of King's Cross in London, has been appointed by the joint venture as development manager. Carillion announced separately that it expected to invest up to £12m of equity into the project, as well as delivering up to £580m of construction work.
theguardian.com
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