【明報專訊】IN ANNOUNCING the land sale programme for the final quarter of this financial year, the government has put up only a single residential site for tender. The number of private housing units supported by the total land sales of this financial year is expected to reach only around 60% of the original target. As Hong Kong's weak economy and sluggish property market have greatly dampened the sentiment in bidding for sites among developers in recent years, the government has to be more market-oriented and flexible in land disposal.

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Several large-scale development projects by the government, the MTR Corporation and the Urban Renewal Authority ended with abortive tenders over the past two years. Consequently, the government had no choice but to slow down the pace of land disposal. In the first three quarters of the 2024/25 financial year, only a total of three government-owned residential sites were rolled out. Although the Financial Secretary predicted early last year that the government would have a land sale revenue of around $33 billion in this fiscal year, the known income generated stands at only around $4 billion so far.

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Since large property developers already own ample land reserves and have hoarded a considerable number of unsold units, in the face of a property slump and a lacklustre economy, they are naturally more cautious in spending money to bid for sites. Therefore, the government has adjusted its land disposal strategy. The Tung Chung residential site launched this time is a project on a smaller scale, meaning relatively lower investment risks for the developers. It is close to the town centre of Tung Chung and is supported by mature infrastructure nearby. The public housing in the area will also gradually be occupied soon.

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The parcel's previous tender in September 2023 was withdrawn as bids failed to reach the reserve price. One of the reasons was developers' doubt about the capacity of the project's sewage system. They said it could support the building of only 330 units at most, lower than the number of 414 units projected by the government then.

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In the current repackage, the government has made significant efforts to address market concerns. The authorities assert that after professional assessment, existing infrastructure in the area can be enhanced to accommodate more residents, increasing the number of project units to 745. Additionally, a new road in the vicinity is nearing completion. Moreover, the tender conditions are also simplified, without attaching any requirements to build government facilities. This will help developers to reduce the development cost.

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Of course, the successful sale of the MTR Corporation's Tung Chung project nearby is believed to be a major reason for the government's decision to relaunch the site, which was initially not included in the land sale programme of this financial year. One year ago, the MTR-launched Tung Chung East station phase 1 project was going begging because of its large scale and long investment period. The MTR later decided to break the project down, in which the upfront payment was lowered, and the construction of a shopping centre was no longer mandatory. It was eventually sold near the end of last year. This illustrates that as long as the conditions fit, there are developers who will make a bid, even when the projects are located in new development areas.

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The ongoing property slump has undoubtedly impacted the government revenue greatly. But exactly that makes it all the more necessary for the government to take a proactive approach in developing new industries and promoting the growth of the real economy. In this way, the reliance on revenue from land sales can be reduced in the long run. Selling land in low season, the government needs to understand market sentiments in setting tender requirements. Yet it does not mean giving property developers a leading role in controlling land supply. The development of the Northern Metropolis, as well as innovation and technology, is key to Hong Kong's economic upgrading and transformation. If the power to steer land development falls out of the government's hands, it may slow down the pace of development, and perhaps even affect the implementation of the Northern Metropolis vision.

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明報社評 2025.01.08：政府淡市推地須靈活 土地供應堅持主導權

政府公布本財政年度最後一季賣地計劃，招標出售的住宅地只有一幅，當局預計今個年度賣地所能提供的私樓單位，只及原定目標六成許。本港經濟疲弱樓市不振，發展商近年投地意欲大減，政府推地需要更貼市和更具彈性。

過去兩年政府、港鐵和市建局多個大型發展項目都以流標收場。政府不得不放慢推地步伐，2024/25年度頭3季，合共只推出3幅住宅官地。財政司長去年初預測，今個財政年度政府會有約330億元土地收入，惟目前已知收入僅40多億元。

大型發展商本來就有不少土地儲備及貨尾單位積存在手，樓市不振、經濟失色下，對於斥資投地自然更趨保守。政府調整推地策略，這次推出的東涌住宅地，屬規模較細的項目，發展商投資風險相對較低，位置接近東涌市中心，配套支援成熟，附近的公營房屋稍後也將陸續入伙。

有關地皮曾於2023年9月招標，因未到底價而收回，原因之一是發展商質疑，有關項目排污配套容量不足，最多只能興建330伙，低於當時政府的預測414伙。

今回政府「舊地重推」，在回應市場關切方面，下了不少工夫。當局表示，專業團隊研究後認為區內現有基建可提升，承載更多居民，項目單位數量可增至745個，附近新道路也快將竣工。另外，今次招標條款也比較簡單，並無加入任何興建政府設施的要求，有利發展商減省發展成本。

當然，政府突然決定重推這幅原本不在本年度賣地計劃的土地，一大原因相信是鄰近的港鐵東涌項目成功推售。一年前，港鐵推出東涌東站一期項目，由於規模太大投資期長，結果無人問津。其後港鐵決定拆細項目，除了調低前期費用，又不再要求興建商場，終於去年底批出，說明只要條件合適，就算項目位於新發展區，仍然有發展商願意投地。

樓市持續不振，對庫房收入影響無疑巨大，然而正因如此，政府更須積極發展新產業，促進實體經濟發展，從而長遠減少對賣地相關收入的依賴。政府淡市賣地，招標條件需要多了解市場意向，不等於要將土地供應主導權交給發展商。建設北都發展創科，是香港經濟升級轉型所在，倘若土地開發主導權旁落，有可能拖慢發展步伐，甚至影響整個北都規劃的落實。

■/ Glossary 生字 /

lacklustre：​not interesting or exciting; not bright

be going begging：if sth is going begging, it is available because nobody else wants it

real economy：the part of a country's economy that produces goods and services, rather than the part that consists of financial services such as banks, stock markets, etc

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Audio files provided by John W