The plan to develop Universal Beijing theme park was sealed on September 13, in a contract signing ceremony at the New York headquarters of Comcast NBCUniversal Cable Networks. The ceremony was attended by Beijing’s vice mayor Shixiang Li, who is also a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee.
The plan to develop Universal Beijing theme park was given the go ahead on September 25 last year by the State Council and the National Development and Reform Commission. The plan was expedited in the past year, under the leadership of Beijing Municipal government prompting innovative solutions to bring the plan to reality, and effective negotiations between the China and the US parties.
The joint venture agreement marks a milestone for the development of the Universal Beijing theme park and lays the groundwork for implementing the development plan. The Chinese and US parties will set up a joint venture company to kickstart planning work with the goal of quickly launching the park.
After witnessing the signing ceremony, Mr Li also held talks with Comcast Corporation’s chairman and CEO Brian Roberts, NBCUniversal’s CEO Stephen Burke, and Universal Parks and Resorts’s chairman and CEO Tom Williams. Mr Li said that the Beijing government is as always giving the project its full support and will create good conditions for hosting the world-class theme park in Beijing. He welcomed Comcast NBCUniversal to expand its investments in Beijing.
Mr Roberts thanked the Beijing government for its support of NBCUniversal and said he was optimistic of the Beijing’s future development. He said Comcast NBCUniversal will make the theme park in Beijing a top quality facility in partnership with the municipal government, and will continue to seek opportunities to expand its business undertakings in China, especially in Beijing. (Translation by Shuk)
