The cost of a hydro-electric power generator
to be installed in the power station of the Three Gorges
Project is similar to the price of a Boeing 737 jetliner, a
project official has revealed.
Companies
worldwide have been engaged in cut-throat competition in
attempts to win the rights to produce and sell the
high-power generators to China through international bidding
invited by the overseer of the project.
In
June 1996, the overseer of the project, the China Yangtze
River Three Gorges Project Development Corporation (CTGPC),
announced in Beijing that China will buy hydro-electric
power generators from manufacturers worldwide.
Big-name companies from Germany, France,
Switzerland, Norway, Canada, Russia, such as Siemens, ABB,
GE, and Mitsubishi, have bought tender documents, with some
even forming consortia to outbid each other.
It is rare for so many influential companies
to participate in a bidding competition, said a CTGPC
official.
The official explained that it is
"the huge commercial cost of the equipment that has
aroused worldwide attention, especially at a time when the
world market for generators is sluggish."
By December 18, 1996, companies from nine
countries had beaten a 4 pm deadline to deliver tender
documents to the overseer of the project, winning the rights
to participate in the "bidding Marathon" which
will not end until next summer.
China is now
evaluating the bid documents.
"The stable
operation of a ready-made generator is what China cares
about most, and what bidders should focus on," the
official said.
"Another decisive factor
is the price," adding that "if a bidder can get
export credits or other loans from the government and
financial agencies, it will become more competitive."
The official disclosed that some companies or
consortia have won credit support from their respective
governments or financial agencies of their countries.
The Three Gorges Project, the world's largest
hydro-electrical project, plans to install a total of 26
generators. The first group of generators are expected to
start generating electricity in 2003.
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