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The Financial Secretary announced in the 2012-13 Budget two measures to encourage data centre development through optimisation of industrial buildings or industrial lots. The two measures will be open for application tomorrow (June 25).
The two measures are:
(1) the Government will exempt the waiver fee for applications approved for changing parts of an industrial building into data centre use submitted by owners of industrial buildings located in "Industrial", "Commercial" or "Other Specified Uses (Business)" zones aged 15 years or above; and
(2) for development of high-tier data centres involving lease modification on industrial lots, the Government will assess the premium for the lease modification on the basis of high-tier data centre use for the data centre part of the proposed development.
"Interested parties may refer to the Lands Department LAO Practice Note No. 3/2012 (www.landsd.gov.hk/en/legco/lpn.htm) for details on the application criteria and the necessary supporting documents. They are also advised to engage competent professionals to assist them in submitting applications," a spokesman for the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) said.
All applications must be submitted to the Lands Department by March 31, 2016. For more information on government initiatives to facilitate development of data centres, please visit the thematic portal of the Data Centre Facilitation Unit of OGCIO (www.datacentre.gov.hk).
Ends/Sunday, June 24, 2012
Issued at HKT 11:00
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