Hong Kong seeks HK$27.2bn for San Tin Tech City phase, wetland park
Hong Kong's government will seek Legislative Council Finance Committee approval for HK$27.2 billion for the second stage of San Tin Tech City's first phase, the first stage of Sam Po Shek Wetland Park and a new clean-water facility. The tech city works involve acquiring 120 hectares of private land
The Hong Kong government will seek Legislative Council Finance Committee approval for nearly HK$27.2 billion for the second stage of the first phase of the San Tin Tech City, the first stage of the first phase of the Sam Po Shek Wetland Conservation Park, and the construction of a new clean-water facility, the government announced on 24 October 2026.
The San Tin Tech City first-phase second-stage works are estimated to cost about HK$16.55 billion and cover a development area of 175 hectares. The project requires the resumption of 120 hectares of private land, the relocation of 206 households and about 91 business operators, and will affect about 79 hectares of fish ponds.
To accelerate the development of the Northern Territories, the Civil Engineering and Construction Department has adopted a “new engineering contract” framework contract system combined with a “target price contract model” for this project. Documents submitted to the legislature state that the framework contract can flexibly respond to actual site conditions, effectively reduce risks and control costs, while the target price contract model includes a mechanism for sharing cost savings or cost overruns, establishing a common goal for cost control. This is the first time the government has applied this procurement model to large-scale site formation and infrastructure works, encouraging both parties to jointly control construction costs.
If the Finance Committee approves the funding, the Civil Engineering and Construction Department will begin works from the end of 2026 to early 2027, with a target of gradually completing land formation and releasing innovation and technology land from fiscal year 2028/29 onwards.
As for the first stage of the first phase of the Sam Po Shek Wetland Conservation Park, it covers an area of about 132 hectares. The authorities plan to merge small, scattered fish ponds into larger water bodies and install artificial habitat islands and other ecological enhancement measures. Existing or abandoned fish pond sites near the Shenzhen River will be converted into ecologically valuable “smart gei wai” (traditional tidal fish ponds).