By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-01-07 13:28:24 | Updated at 2025-01-08 13:02:33
23 hours ago
Hong Kong’s ambitious plan to build three artificial islands at a cost of HK$580 billion (US$74.6 billion) may be further delayed after the development minister refused to specify a start date for the reclamation work amid a snowballing deficit.
Just days after the finance chief warned of coming belt-tightening, Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho said on Tuesday that certain projects, such as the Northern Metropolis planned along the border, would have to be prioritised.
As recently as October, Linn said the government hoped to start reclaiming 1,000 hectares (2,470 acres) of land in waters off Kau Yi Chau in 2027, two years behind the schedule set by the administration when it took office in 2022. But on Tuesday she declined to set a start date.
“We do not need to determine the actual date for work commencement now,” she said as she met the press over quarterly land sales. “The most important thing is to prepare well.”
The government would continue preparation for the reclamation work, she stressed, noting the statutory process of submitting the environmental impact assessment report was under way.
“Once we prepare well, the government can take the lead and then consider the economic environment and financial situation at that time to decide when and how to implement the project,” she said.
