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LCQ6: Third cargo terminal
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    Following is a question by the Hon Wong Ting-kwong and a reply by the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour, Mr Stephen Ip, in the Legislative Council today (January 10):

Question:

     The Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) recently announced in December 2006 that a third air cargo terminal would be built by way of open tender.  In this connection, will the Government inform this Council :

(a) whether it has assessed Hong Kong's future demand for air cargo services and air cargo handling capacity; if it has, of the assessment results; if not, the reasons for that;

(b) whether it knows the factors considered by AA in deciding to build the third air cargo terminal; and

(c) whether it has assessed the impact of building the third air cargo terminal on the air cargo industry; if it has, of the assessment results; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

Madam President,

(a) The Airport Authority (AA) expects the demand for air cargo services to continue to grow.  At the same time, competition from airports in the region will also intensify.  In order to maintain the competitiveness of the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), AA adopts a regular planning programme involving different aspects, namely an annual budget, a rolling five-year plan, as well as a 20-year plan that is updated every five years.  In developing these plans, AA takes into account the views of the industry and relevant stakeholders.  In its latest 20-year plan, the HKIA 2025, AA forecasts that Hong Kong will handle 8 million tons of air cargo annually by 2025, exceeding the capacity provided by the existing two cargo terminals and the express cargo terminal.

(b) AA's objective is to maintain HKIA's long-term competitiveness. In considering proposals for facility expansion to achieve this objective, AA takes into account key factors including the demand of airlines, shippers, freight forwarders and other industry players; the views of AA's business partners; regional market dynamics; and the time required for design and construction.  Having considered these factors, AA concludes that this is the right time to proceed with the development of a third air cargo terminal to ensure the timely provision of sufficient cargo handling capacity.

(c) AA believes that the global air cargo traffic will see sustained growth, and that cargo flows from Asia, particularly those from the Mainland to the US and Europe, will be the fastest to grow.  As HKIA expands its connections with points in the Mainland and other places, the third air cargo terminal will enable the air cargo industry in Hong Kong to capture a good share of the growing air cargo demand, thereby facilitating and contributing to the sustained growth of the industry.

Ends/Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Issued at HKT 13:11

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