According to Bloomberg, China Ocean Shipping Group Co and China Merchants Group Ltd, both controlled by the Chinese government, are in talks to invest in Kaohsiung, Taiwan’s largest port, according to Yang Ming Group.
The two each want to buy a 20 per cent stake in Yang Ming’s container-terminal operations at the harbour, Frank Lu, the Taiwan company’s chairman, told reporters in Taipei last week.
Mainland companies have begun eyeing investments in Taiwan as the island considers easing restrictions amid warmer cross-strait relations.
“Several Chinese investors are interested in a stake” in the terminals, said Yang Ming President Robert Ho. Cosco and China Merchants “are the most interested. We have been talking continuously.”
Yang Ming, Taiwan’s second-biggest container-shipping line, last year won a NT$16.2 billion (US$496m) loan to build four container terminals at Kaohsiung. The company will run the terminals for 50 years under a build-operate-transfer deal with the government, it said.
The first and second terminals of the project are scheduled to start test runs in October 2010, with commercial operations planned for January 1, 2011.
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