THE CITY of Terrace and the Kitselas First Nation say they've signed a memorandum of understanding with the Qinhuangdao Economic and Technological Development Zone located in Qinhuangdao, a city on the north coast of China.
The memorandum could lead to the purchase by Chinese industrial and manufacturing interests of land at the city's Skeena Industrial Development Park located just south of the Northwest Regional Airport.
Located on Kitselas traditional territory, the city and the Kitselas have a cost and profit sharing arrangement regarding the sales of industrial park lands.
A delegation of eight city of Terrace and Kitselas officials returned Nov. 23 from a one week business trip to Qinhuangdao where they met with representatives from manufacturing companies.
The memorandum is an initial step in “exploring a promising economic development partnership with potential investors in Qinhuangdao, China,” says a news release from the city.
The release also states that representatives from the Qinhuangdao Economic and Technological Development Zone will be coming to Terrace in May or June of 2014.
The delegation will include “potential investors from a number of manufacturing companies from Qinhuangdao,” according to the release.
Chinese investors could be interested in manufacturing products in B.C. that would then be sold to North American markets, the delegation told council on Nov.25.
Pernarowski said that resource-based products using aluminium or other resources from the Terrace region is a possibility, and also a log shipping operation that would take the whole tree “from root to tip”.
“It was very interesting to tour several technological and agricultural industries and to see how they work,” said Chief Bevan from the Kitselas First Nation. “The industrial lands give us an opportunity for sustainable jobs that will last well beyond the short term construction work that we see in other industries.”
"The goal of the delegation was to build stronger relationships with potential investors in China’s Qinhuangdao Economic and Technological Development Zone, which both the City of Terrace and Kitselas First Nation believe could lead to new investment in the Terrace region, notably at the Skeena Industrial Development Park which is a Joint Venture Partnership between the City and Kitselas," says the release.
A Chinese statement released through the Qinhuangdao Economic and Technological DevelopmentZone and then translated through an online translator refers to its memorandum with the city and Kitselas as leading to cooperation “for the direction of the industrial park to attract multinational companies, including industrial projects, including China's.”
It also refers to the establishment of a “one stop service system … responsible for the management and operation of industrial parks, establishment of the park project working group responsible for the park project in land planning, financing, approvals and other matters of coordination and progress.”