The three industrial estates in Hong Kong located in Yuen Long, Tai Po and Tseung Kwan O are nearly fully utilized, sparking concern on whether the city needs more lands for industrial development, the estates' management Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation said.

The corporation is a government statutory body established to spearhead Hong Kong's bid to become a major center of innovation and technology development, and a leading hub for high value-adding, skill-intensive manufacturing and service industries.

The corporation has a 22-hectare science and technology park, three industrial estates totaling 239 hectares, as well as the InnoCentre.

The corporation's chief executive officer Anthony Tan said in a media briefing yesterday that it has commissioned a study, which will be completed by the end of the year, to find out ways to improve management of the estates and attract competitive companies.

The industrial estates in Tai Po and Yuen Long are operating at full capacity, while two-third of the Tseung Kwan O estate is occupied. As lands in these industrial estates are either sold or approved to business operators, the corporation may not be able to take them back as it wishes. So there is a need to look for new land.

Several large corporations are interested in establishing data centers in these estates, the corporation's marketing and admission vice president Ken Hui revealed.

"We are studying the future development of the industrial estates," said Tan. "We don't rule out the possibility of having a new industrial estate if circumstances allow."

Meanwhile, the corporation also announced details of the third phase of the science and technology park in Sha Tin.

The third phase of the park focuses on developing businesses in biotechnology, energy and environmental protection.

The first building in the third phase will be completed by 2012.

The gross floor area for each phase of the park is about one million sq ft.

The construction cost of the third phase is still being calculated, but the corporation's projects and facilities vice president Chan Man-wai said it will be more expensive compared to the first two phases because of inflation.

The costs for the first and second phases were between HK$3 and HK$4 billion each.

A pedestrian bridge linking the park and the Chinese University of Hong Kong will be included in the third phase.

Chan said the corporation is willing to spend an extra five percent of the construction cost on environmental-friendly measures, such as the use of renewable energy and sustainable wood.

The corporation has recently reached an agreement with Dupont. The multi-national chemical firm will set up its global thin film photovoltaic business and a research and development center in the park.

The occupancy rates at the first and second phases of the park have reached more than 90 percent and 50 percent respectively.

The corporation expected that occupancy for the second phase will reach 68 percent by March next year.

Tan said the first two phases have created 6,000 job opportunities, and expected the third phase to create another 3,000.

(HK Edition 06/04/2008 page1)