Projects being considered include factory and five-star hotel as Isle of Man touts advantages, from skilled labor to partnership with Liverpool

Steven Beevers still remembers going to China for the first time in August 2011, when the Isle of Man government decided to boost cooperation with China.

Since then, he has visited the country 16 times, and witnessed bilateral trade and investment relationships accelerate.

"We do recognize China is the number one country in its ability to make overseas investment, and to that extent China could be the most important foreign partner for the Isle of Man," says Beevers, who heads special projects at the Isle of Man's Department of Economic Development.

Even in the years before the financial crisis, the British dependency realized that a diversified economy was necessary. Because its dependency on the financial services industry was not sustainable in the face of global volatility, it worked on building up more industries.

"As a natural evolution of our economic development, our government has put in incentives for encouraging export-oriented high technology and new industries with great potential for growth, such as in green energy and biotechnology," Beevers says.

They are keen to attract Chinese investors from a range of industries, from precision engineering to advanced technology industries like biomedical and nanotechnology.

"A big advantage we have is the supply of professionals with international skills and experienced labor who can provide the necessary startup support services, and another is our government's support for investment in the form of equity funding, loans and grants, to help businesses set up operations."

This spring, his office expects to host at least two delegations from China, either of which could produce a large amount of investment, he says.

One is a manufacturer of health products that is looking to manufacture cosmetics and other products on the island, which is located in the Irish Sea between Britain and Ireland. It could become the first Chinese manufacturing firm with such an operation there and may create 65 jobs.

The government also is launching a Enterprise Development Scheme offering soft loans or equity investment in such projects, allowing Chinese firms to buy back equity at a later stage.

The second group to be hosted would consider building the island's first five-star hotel.

He says such a new hotel could be important for Chinese businesses and wealthy tourists, with the owner's knowledge of what Chinese customers want helping provide the right services.

Meanwhile, the Isle of Man is becoming increasingly popular as a place to register Chinese ships and aircraft. About 60 Chinese merchant ships and just over a dozen Chinese private and corporate aircraft have been added.

Beevers says because the Isle of Man shipping and aircraft registers have high regulatory standards, matching recognized British standards, ships and aircraft on its register are more likely to be accepted in other international jurisdictions.

"In addition, these Isle of Man registers have favorable costs, as they only charge a flat annual fee. Moreover, their key unique selling point is that they provide good and timely services to customers, especially in resolving incidents that customers may encounter," he says.

In November, Beevers and a team from his office went to China with Liverpool officials for a weeklong promotional tour in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin and Wuxi.

Simon Pickering, head of retail financial services on the Isle of Man, who led the island's delegation, says they met with many Chinese technology companies to promote their advantages in technological infrastructure, including a 4G network that allows efficient communications.

In Shanghai, his team met with representatives from China's Ministry of Commerce. They set up plans for signing a nonbinding agreement that would encourage companies in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone to set up subsidiary offices in the Isle of Man.

The island's decision to work with Liverpool is natural since they have historical links and geographical proximity, as well as complementary industries. The Isle of Man also has joined the Liverpool China Committee, made up of government agencies and universities, with the goal of attracting Chinese investment and building partnerships with Chinese businesses.

That could create an attractive package for Chinese investors, Pickering says. "For example, if a Chinese company wants to open a factory on the Isle of Man for 400 people, we'd probably recommend that they base their factory in Liverpool because the Isle of Man is quite small, but they can base their marketing office here."

The Liverpool government is hosting the International Festival of Business this summer and is looking for Chinese firms to participate.

Beevers says the festival also will present a good opportunity for visitors to make the 20-minute flight to the Isle of Man.

Contact the reporter throughcecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com