Bank backs global development drive

Belt and Road initiative the focus of lender's strategy, as it provides much-needed cash to various programs

Since the Chinese government proposed the Belt and Road Initiative in 2013, the program has made unexpected progress with the participation of more than 100 countries, regions and international organizations.

Chinese enterprises, especially large financial organizations like China Development Bank, have played an important role in promoting the progress.

Since the very beginning of the initiative, the bank has offered crucial financial support for a great number of infrastructure and industry projects in the regions along the routes, boosting local growth and enhancing multilateral cooperation.

According to Hu Huaibang, chairman of the bank, China Development Bank had approved loans worth $160 billion to countries along the Belt and Road by the end of 2016. The loan balance reached $110 billion, accounting for more than 30 percent of the bank's international business.

"Guided by the central government's various measures for implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, China Development Bank has carried out its global strategy in a steady and active manner," Hu said.

He said that serving the Belt and Road Initiative has been a focus of the bank's international operations, adding that it highlights both business expansion and risk control.

Milestone projects

A milestone project that was financially supported by China Development Bank is the Hinkley Point C Nuclear Power Station in Somerset, England.

The HPC project is co-invested by EDF of France and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, with EDF holding a 66.5 percent stake and the latter holding the remaining 33.5 percent. The two investors and the British government signed all final agreements for the power station in September 2016, meaning the project was officially initiated.

China Development Bank entered into an agreement with China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group in October 2015 to offer financing support and other financial services.

Total investment of the project will amount to about $29 billion. China Development Bank will offer long-term and medium-term loans to China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group to cover 80 percent of its investment in the project, according to a Xinhua report.

Construction on the HPC project is planned to begin in 2019.

In addition to the HPC project, major overseas projects that received China Development Bank's financing include the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway in Indonesia, the China-Russian petroleum and gas project and the Central Asian natural gas pipeline.

Built and invested by a joint venture between China Railway Co Ltd and several Indonesian enterprises, the Jakarta-Bandung railway will be Indonesia's first high-speed railway. This is also the first overseas deal that a Chinese high-speed rail enterprise has secured, using China's advanced technologies and equipment.

China Development Bank will offer loans to cover about three-quarters of the investment of the project, which requires more than $5 billion in total funding.

Construction on the project began in January 2016 and it is expected to be operational in 2019, according to a Xinhua report.

The bank has also participated in the planning of a number of bilateral and multilateral programs in the Belt and Road Initiative framework and in partnership with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce.

Intl cooperation

These include bilateral development cooperation plans between China and eight countries including Kazakhstan, Laos, Cambodia and Kuwait.

The bank has also taken part in the planning for the China-Mongolia-Russia, China-Pakistan and Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar economic corridors.

In addition to bilateral and multilateral schemes, China Development Bank has helped several Belt and Road countries to plan their own national development programs.

These include plans for the Suez Canal Economic Corridor and a number of key industrial plans for Laos.

By the end of 2016, China Development Bank had planned more than 500 projects in countries and regions along the Belt and Road, requiring a combined investment of $350 billion, according to the bank.

China Development Bank has played an important role in establishing bilateral and multilateral financial cooperation mechanisms between China and the Belt and Road regions.

The bank is the initiator of inter-bank association establishments under the frameworks of Shanghai Cooperation Organization, China-ASEAN Dialogue and the BRICS.

The bank has also established partnerships with financial institutions in 98 countries, regions and subregions under bilateral or multilateral frameworks.

China Development Bank has also cooperated with domestic and foreign governments and international organizations to host a number of meetings and forums to facilitate networking among global financial institutions.

Capitalizing on its own advantages as an experienced bank in international operations, China Development Bank has organized a number of training programs for countries along the Belt and Road.

In 2016, the bank hosted 20 such training sessions for more than 900 trainees. Ninety-eight students from 18 countries have received scholarships from the bank to study in China.

"The active participation in the Belt and Road Initiative is our unshakable responsibility," said Zheng Zhijie, president of China Development Bank.

He added that the bank will continue to make full use of its strengths in development finance and international operations to better serve the countries and regions along the route.

zhaoshijun@chinadaily.com.cn

Construction of the White Rock Wind Farm project in Australia, which is financially supported by China Development Bank, begins in May 2016. Photos Provided To China Daily