Tender For Abandoned Kai Tak Site Fails

The government has failed to sell off a prime plot of waterfront land in Kai Tak, after none of the bids from five developers met its reserve price.

The land parcel had already been sold once previously. In May, Goldin Financial Holdings Ltd won the previous tender with a HK$11.1 billion bid, but abandoned the deal a month later, forfeiting a HK$25 million deposit.

It explained that it was dropping the deal out of concerns over "social contradiction and economic instability" in Hong Kong, as the anti-extradition protests were heating up.

On Wednesday, the Lands Department said five developers, including CK Asset, Sun Hung Kai, Chinese Estates, Sino Land and Great Eagle submitted bids in a second tender, but none reached the minimum price set by the government.

“The Government will not speculate on the reasons accounting for the bids placed by tenderers”, a spokesman said.

He did not specify how the government will proceed with the failed tender, saying only that the administration “will consider the disposal arrangements at an appropriate time.”

This is the sixth failed land tender since 2014.