In the case of China's burgeoning environment protection industry, the potential is huge enough to counteract any concern of China Everbright International, a mainland conglomerate listed in Hong Kong that is known for its property and infrastructure business.

 

"We consider the environment protection industry a rising and green one. We are confident about its prospect," Chen Xiaoping, Everbright's executive director and chief executive officer, told Xinhua in an interview Monday.

 

Only three years ago has Everbright stridden into the environment protection sector, contracting a project generating electricity through burning rubbish in a southern Chinese city.

 

With an investment of 500 million yuan (US$62.5 million), the project to start operation in June boasts the capability of treating 1,000 tons of garbage a day and selling 89 million kilowatt-hours of electricity a year.

 

Over the past three years, Everbright has went through high-speed growth in "green investment", said Chen.

 

Since 2003, the conglomerate has invested in six environmental protection projects with more than 1.2 billion HK dollars (US$154.84 million).

 

In addition to several projects generating electricity through burning or burying rubbish, Everbright also invested in plants treating waste water.

 

In sharp contrast to its hefty investment, Everbright has recorded modest profit from the pro-environment projects.

 

None of the group's seven green investment projects has started operation until 2005.

 

"It has been three years of fast-growing investment and we have to wait till the projects mature enough to get profit," explained Chen.

 

Chen's patience over the green projects has echoed an investment boom in pro-environment industry in China.

 

Taking the garbage-treatment project as example, there have been 140 such plants operating or under construction in China's mainland by the end of 2005.

 

The State Environmental Protection Administration estimated that hundreds of plants generating electricity through burning or burying garbage would be built over the next five years.

 

In the 11th five-year plan, the concept of "Green GDP" was highly stressed, which not only set goals of curbing pollution but also pledging to achieve economic development on an environment-friendly basis.

 

The government's increased attention on environment protection has soon been interpreted as business potential by businessmen.

 

It's estimated that 1.3 trillion yuan (US$162.5 billion) would be invested in industries related to environment protection within the next five years.

 

Everbright is among the first to make the move. In April, the group sold out an office building in Hong Kong's expensive Centralarea, in a bid to streamline its business and better focus on operation of its environment protection investment.

 

Chen also told reporters that Everbright planned to enlarge its expenditure on pro-environment projects and gradually develop these projects into the group's major business.

 

Currently, the green sector has accounted for a growing percentage of the Everbright's total turnover, jumping from 4 percent in 2004 to 42 percent of last year.

 

A good news for the company. The environment protection sector has started contributing to company profits, beginning with a portion of 11 percent of the group's total profits in 2005.

 

(Xinhua News Agency May 16, 2006)