Taiwan headquarters will grace Hengqin's skyline

Taiwanese business people will have a 10,950-sq-m Hengqin headquarters building within two years as a stronghold for various investment activities targeting Zhuhai, according to officials at a cornerstone laying ceremony on Nov 24.

The 32-story edifice located on Xing'ao Road in Hengqin New Area will cost 1 billion yuan ($151.5 million), raised from 21 Taiwanese investors, and will serve more than 200 Taiwan-funded firms and investment institutions.

The building's 90,000 sq m will house offices and businesses including trading companies, financial and commercial centers, department stores, and a Taiwan cuisine street.

Targets have been set to develop the commercial complex into a demonstration Taiwanese business headquarters office cluster in Zhuhai, a modern financial trade exhibition center in the Pearl River Delta, and a national cross-border e-commerce integrated experience site.

Rendering of Hengqin headquarters to serve Taiwanese businesses [Photo provided by Taiwan Affairs Office under the Zhuhai government]

Chiang Pin-kung, chairman of the Third Wednesday Club and Straits Economic & Cultural Interchange Association, predicted that cross-strait economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation would make the new building a Zhuhai landmark. He praised Zhuhai's development achievements and asked for continuous support for Taiwanese businesses.

Zhao Jianguo, deputy secretary of the CPC Zhuhai Municipal Party Committee, called this an opportunity for development that should be seized, citing the dynamic combination of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge nearing completion, creation of the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone (GDFTZ) Hengqin Area of Zhuhai, Pearl River Delta National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone, and Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

If the headquarters edifice takes full advantage of Zhuhai's favorable industrial policies, then larger and stronger businesses will emerge. In the meantime, Taiwan-funded enterprises should continue to enhance their core competitiveness, Zhao said.

As of September this year, Zhuhai had approved 1,092 Taiwan-funded enterprises bringing in contracts valued at $3.6 billion and contributing to actual total investment of nearly $2.5 billion. That figure indicates the important role Taiwanese businesses are playing in Zhuhai's economic growth.

Chen Yunlin, advisor to the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits; and Xu Mang, director of the Taiwan Affairs Department of Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR, attended the groundbreaking ceremony.