IT chief welcomes competition at Northern Metropolis

Technology Minister Sun Dong welcomed competition among companies managing industrial parks in Northern Metropolis during a recent interview. Speaking on a Commercial Radio program, the minister emphasized that while there may be overlap in business operations, a degree of competition is not necessarily detrimental. He elaborated that firms interested in sectors such as advanced construction or transport and logistics at the San Tin Technopole would be referred to alternative locations if they were deemed unsuitable by the government.

Should a company still wish to establish itself in the designated site, they would need to follow operational guidance provided by respective bureaus. Sun also reported that 80 percent of the floor space in the 10-story Loop Academic One (Building 1) had already been leased out, with the remaining four buildings anticipated to become operational by the year's end.

Additionally, he disclosed that pilot lines of the Hong Kong Microelectronics Research and Development Institute (MRDI) were set to commence operations at the Microelectronics Centre in Yuen Long by the end of the year. To date, MRDI has secured cooperation agreement orders valued in the tens of millions of dollars, and the minister expects the pilot lines to attract over 50 such orders annually.