​Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) today (July 8) welcomed the signing of the first works contract and a second-phase Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and a consortium of French companies, marking a progressive step that translates the low-carbon retrofit partnership commenced in September 2025 into concrete action.
      
     Signed by HKUST, Schneider Electric and Veolia, the works contract sets a retrofit pilot in motion at the Lee Shau Kee Business Building on the HKUST campus. It adopts a groundbreaking Energy Performance Contract (EPC) model, under which both French companies finance the upfront investment, to be recovered over a 15-year term through verified energy savings, while HKUST bears no construction or equipment costs. At its heart is an AI-powered system that senses real-time classroom occupancy and adjusts the cooling mechanism automatically, keeping users comfortable while cutting wasted energy. The project is expected to be completed within 24 months.
      
     As well, HKUST, Bouygues-Dragages and Veolia signed the second-phase MOU that aims to extend the collaboration beyond the initial building to student residences and other campus blocks. It will also explore innovative financing mechanisms to support the broader retrofitting across Hong Kong. Together, these two agreements move the partnership toward a scalable, data-oriented, and market-driven model for decarbonising the city's built environment.
      
     These latest initiatives build upon the publication of the Team France Green Paper by a coalition of French diplomatic, trade, and commercial entities in Hong Kong back in April 2024 - collectively known as Team France - dedicated to accelerating the city's path to carbon neutrality by 2050. Supported by the strategic advisory of the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau and the facilitation of InvestHK, this groundwork led to a pilot retrofit partnership with HKUST in 2025.

     Officiating the signings, the Consul-General of France in Hong Kong and Macau, Ms Christile Drulhe, said, "After the signing of the first-phase MOU last year, I am delighted to see HKUST and our partners in Team France press ahead and turn ambition into action through this pioneering project. By leveraging the HKUST campus as a pilot to drastically reduce energy consumption and French investment as a test case of public-private partnership, this initiative powerfully demonstrates how French innovation and Hong Kong excellence can accelerate the low-carbon transformation of our built environment."
      
     The Director-General of Investment Promotion of InvestHK, Ms Alpha Lau, said, "Carbon neutrality is crucial to communities and businesses alike, while offers immense business opportunities. This collaboration highlights how world-class European green technology aligns with Hong Kong's targeted green ambitions. In this groundbreaking pilot, we do not just facilitate investment but also help build an addressable sustainability market that connects government, industry, academia, research and investment."
      
     Acting President of HKUST, Professor Tam Kar-yan, said, "Our partnership with Team France began in 2025 with an MOU to explore opportunities in building decarbonisation and retrofitting. That MOU laid a strong foundation for what we formalise today: a performance-based model defined by measurable outcomes and clear accountability under this EPC. We are moving from intention to implementation, and through a second-phase MOU with Team France, expanding collaboration to the broader retrofit initiative, reflecting HKUST's enduring commitment to decarbonisation, energy efficiency, and a net-zero future."

     Given that over 90 per cent of Hong Kong's existing buildings are expected to still be standing in 2050, the retrofit sector offers substantial opportunities for European and international companies to invest, innovate, and grow, while contributing to the high-quality development of the city.

Ends/Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Issued at HKT 17:20

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