A delegation of Chinese municipal government representatives on a fact finding mission to Queensland made a stop in Cairns to meet with industry leaders last week. The meeting, facilitated by Advance Cairns following an approach by Trade Queensland, was the first in a series of engagements that included meetings in Brisbane and the Gold Coast for the six delegates from the Zhuhai Municipal Government in Guandong Province.

Hosted by Advance Cairns Director and Cairns Mayor Val Schier, the meeting was also attended by Advance Cairns directors Rob Giason and Jeremy Blockey, economic development officer Sarah Powell, Cairns Airport Executive General Manager Kayleen Collins, Queensland China Council Chairperson Sim Hayward, JCU Cairns Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Scott Bowman and DTRDI TradeStart Export Advisor  John Bissell.

The delegates from the Zhuhai Working Group of Foreign Affairs were eager to explore business opportunities in a range of areas including: tourism (super yachts, hospitality training, maintaining unique natural environment in tourist developments); aviation (precision machinery, aircraft maintenance flight training and China-Australia flight routes), education and primary industries.

The introductory meeting paved the way for ongoing discussions of trade opportunities and sharing of expertise between Zhuhai and Cairns, and concluded with a formal invitation by the Deputy Director of Foreign Affairs for a Cairns delegation of business and industry leaders to Zhuhai in 2009.

Millions of dollars worth of major infrastructure project opportunities available to Cairns businesses will be outlined at a forum in the city this week, Advance Cairns advises. Hosted by the Industry Capability Network (ICN), the two-hour forum will identify current and upcoming major infrastructure and industrial projects in the Cairns region, valued in excess of $1 billion, as well as provide advice on how local manufacturers and value-adding service providers can access such opportunities.

Advance Cairns Chairman, Russell Beer has urged local businesses to take advantage of the opportunities the forum will provide. “This forum will give local businesses a foot in the door for a variety of projects that they may otherwise be unaware of,” Mr Beer said. “We see this as the perfect opportunity to connect local businesses with large-scale opportunities arising from regional development,” he said.

Guest speakers from the ICN will explain how they assist in procurement and project management to maximise local content, while representatives from Thiess will provide an update on the $445m expansion of the Lotus Glen Correctional Centre. The Major Hospitals Project Office will also provide an update on the background of the Cairns Base Hospital upgrade and the changes in store for the facility.

The event will be held in conjunction with the Cairns office of the Department of Tourism, Regional Development and Industry. The Major Projects forum will be held from 7.00am – 9.00am on Friday, November 21 at the Sebel Cairns (formerly the Cairns International Hotel).

To register, contact the Cairns office of the Department of Tourism, Regional Development and Industry on 4048 1110, or Eddo Roggeveen on 3364 0678.