News

Macao International Environmental Cooperation Forum and Exhibition 2011 (MIECF2011) came to a successful conclusion today (April 2). Business community, organizations as well as government representatives unanimously agree that this year´s MIECF will be instrumental in promoting multi-lateral exchanges. “We have actively participated in every year´s MIECF. This year, apart from setting-up a booth to showcase Germany´s current market situation for environmental products to Macao and even Greater China´s participants, there are also several speakers from Germany present at the MIECF to share their experience with the audience regarding Germany and other countries´ contribution to energy efficiency and emission reduction. We very much cherish this opportunity, in particular because, as in the past, there are many participants from Mainland China”, said Mr. Wolfgang Ehmann, Executive Director of German Chamber of Industry and Commerce. He further pointed out that entrance into the Greater China market could not happen overnight and said that foreign enterprises should seek exposure opportunities to promote their brands and advantages. In fact, this year, there are more German exhibitors than in the past editions of the MIECF, and the German Zone is located in a prominent area of the venue. According to Italy´s representative, Mr. Roberto Francieri, MIECF gives an important opportunity for a German entity to expand abroad and to grab the opportunity to better understand the characteristics of the Chinese market. He gave the following example: “One of the environment issues that we are particularly concerned with at home is solid waste, however, I found that here, most of the discussions are focused on energy. In addition, there are representatives from different provinces and municipalities present at the MIECF, and this enables us to get a broader vision. Immediately after arriving in Macao, I would probably not be aware that everybody could be concerned about energy issues. However, from what I saw from different pavilions, many provinces and municipalities attach great importance to energy saving technology. He said that would be impossible for a person to know what is happening and keep posted on the current situation just from imagination, as the only effective way is to see for themselves. With regards to his company´s debut participation in the MIECF, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries ´sales manager Mr. Yoshitaka Keneko said that Mitsubishi is at present building the light rail in Macao, and therefore hopes to avail of this opportunity to promote Mutsuhibi Heavy Industries ´s non-rail projects during the MIECF, such as power generation and renewable energy technologies. “We regard China as our most important market, and here we can meet a lot of people from Mainland China. Also, visitors from the Mainland could also acquire a better knowledge about our company´s technology and products. Ms. Tang Caihe, sales representative of Zhuhai h&m Lighting Co., Ltd., said that she considers MIECF an ideal promotion platform: “Compared with other exhibitions in the mainland, MIECF, apart from having the opportunity to contact potential domestic buyers, we can also meet buyers from the Macao, Hong Kong and even overseas buyers. Given that the event is held in a prestigious hotel, gives the customer an even better feeling. After exchange with different participants, she got a better understanding of her company´s advantages and where its attraction lies, and said that from the experience of the 2011MIECF, her company could more appropriately adjust its marketing strategy to attract more trade opportunities. In addition to the business community, several government representatives from different countries and regions also participated in the MIECF. Principal Assistant Secretary, Hong Kong Government Environment Bureau, Mr. Yik Pui In said that many companies interested to invest in Hong Kong approached their booth to understand the Hong Kong government´s environmental policy and asked the names of the bureaus to contact. He disclosed that many visitors specifically visited their booth to learn about Hong Kong´s achievements in environmental protection. Mr.Yik also believes that the MIECF is a valuable platform, “in addition to the promotion exercise, we have participated in many sessions of the forum, to learn about other countries´ development in environmental protection and emission reduction. Such interactive exchange is very fruitful”, he added.
…

The 2011 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Exhibition and Forum (2011 MIECF) concluded at 6 pm today, having seen more than 8,800 visitors attend the three-day event, a 10 per cent growth on last year. Among the visitors, more than 6,400 were trade visitors, and the Green Public Day today drew about 2,400 visitors. During the three-day event, 31 pacts or agreements were signed on-site, and the organisers, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and Macao Environmental Protection Bureau (DSPA), said the result showed the achievements of MIECF accumulated in the past few years and its strengthened role as a business platform for the 'green' industry. Over the last three days, the organisers collected 625 projects related to environmental investment and agency for environmental products and arranged 574 business matching sessions for companies, a 38 per cent increase over last year's edition of MIECF. Among the 574 matching sessions, 167 were related to procurement of hotels. Among the 63 signing parties of these protocols, about 60 per cent were from Macao. Other signing parties were from the Mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Portugal and Canada. Six protocols were related to eco-friendly vehicles. This edition of MIECF attracted 324 exhibitors from 24 countries and regions, with some of them globally famously companies and institutions. The exhibition area totaled 16,500 square metres, 22.5 per cent more space over last year's 13,465 square metres. As the awareness of environmental protection had increased in recent years, Ms Echo Chan, the Executive Director of IPIM, said MIECF had made progress in enhancing its scale and influence. The organisers were keen to promote the quality of the exhibitions and some exhibitors reflected that the quality of business matching projects was better and the negotiation processes were smoother. In this edition of MIECF, the organisers had for the first time invited hotel operators in Macao to take part in the exhibition and procure. All six gaming operators had participated. This year´s MIECF exhibited all important products of the green industry, and electric vehicles and related products were the highlight of the exhibition. Some Mainland and overseas carmakers had exhibited their products, such as BMW, BYD and Zhuhai Jetco. Compared with the last edition of MIECF, newly exhibited products this year included charging stations for electric vehicles and smart grid products, while the number of prime exhibitors increased from eight to 11. The Deputy Director of DSPA, Ms Vong Man Hung, sad a number of globally prominent speakers attended this year's MIECF, including Mr Joschka Fischer, Former Vice Chancellor and Former Foreign Minister of Germany, who delivered a keynote speech entitled 'Decoupling Growth and Emissions - a Roadmap to a Prosperous Decarbonized Future' at the opening ceremony, while Mr Klaus Toepfer, Former United Nations Undersecretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, gave a keynote speech entitled 'The Low Carbon Economy - corner stone for a dynamic, sustainable development' on the second day of MIECF. Ms Vong said that the number of forums had increased from five sessions to seven this year, with the participation of 70 speakers from 11 countries and regions. These top officials, experts and academics shared advanced ideas in green industries, technologies in cutting emissions and conserving energy, the tackling of climate change, which attained applause from different sectors of the community. She said that their sharing in building low carbon cities and the relation between urban planning and environment were beneficial to the realisation of the vision of 'Building a low carbon Macao, creating green living together' and Macao's regional positioning as a 'World tourism and leisure centre'. On today's Green Public Day, the organisers had arranged some electric buses as shuttles to take visitors to the exhibition hall. Moreover, about 200 students and teachers were invited to tour the exhibition. The organisers said they hoped that the public could learn more about renewable energy, eco-friendly cars and other eco-friendly equipment and solutions. Their awareness in these technologies would be essential to the adaptation of the latest green technologies in the future in Macao. The MIECF had been staged for four consecutive years and its quality had enhanced as it had become an important platform for green industries in South China and the Pan-Pearl River Delta region. The next edition of MIECF will be staged on 29 to 31 March 2012. For related enquiries, please contact the MIECF Secretariat at tel. (853) 8798-8675, fax (853) 2872-7123, e-mail miecf@ipim.gov.mo or navigate the following official MIECF website: www.macaomief.com
…

According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (1st April 16:01 till 2nd April 16:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1178 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
…

According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (1st April 10:01 till 2nd April 10:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1178 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
…

On the second day of the Macao International Environmental Cooperation Exhibition and Forum 2011 (2011MIECF), Mr. Klaus Toepfer, Former United Nations Under Secretary-General and cumulatively Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), was invited to deliver his keynote speech on “The Carbon Economy – corner stone for a dynamic, sustainable development” and was later interviewed by the media. Mr. Toepfer stressed that sustainable development can be applied to all current technologies and solutions and that human beings should use sustainable development to achieve endless possibilities. During the interview, Mr. Toepfer said: “Everything relates to creativity as anything can be unexpected.” Mr. Toepfer, who is currently 72 years old, gave the example of the internet and mobile phone, which were unimaginable when he was young, however they are widely used nowadays. “In sustainable development, we can think of different ways to solve a current issue, such as carbon dioxide. At present, when dealing with this matter, generally speaking, we have a quite negative approach, for it is either to reduce it or sink it into the sea after compressed. However carbon dioxide is not actually thrash. Everybody says that we need a green environment and precisely plants need carbon dioxide, for without gas they cannot survive. Many chemical programs also need carbon dioxide. As long as it is put into good use, it will not be easily released into the atmosphere and destroy the environment, as we have feared. Of course, Mr. Toepfer´s view does not mean that he rejects the current emission reduction actions, as he stresses that one single formula could not achieve the goal of the world becoming a better place to live in. At the same time, he also rejects the idea of completely stopping the old ways of energy production, including nuclear energy. “One should not put all eggs in one basket, as it would be too dangerous!”. Professor Toepfer, who has held several senior positions in the German government, said that all of us have seen, from the Japan or former Soviet Union´s nuclear incident, the issue of nuclear problems. However, he considers that the world´s attention should not only focus on whether to give up nuclear energy, but how to manage and use nuclear energy in a more secure manner. In this regard, a more stringent and comprehensive safety assessment is extremely important, and every country should ponder, on the basis of its own situation, on whether to continue using different ways of energy production. “You cannot say that I am optimistic, however, as I have lived so many years, my experience enlightens me that as long as the human being is determined to solve a problem, it could eventually be solved”, he said. “We should not put blame on some countries for having started sustainable development not early enough, but on the contrary, we should be happy that they are willing to take the first step now. Regarding China´s 12th 5-Year Plan to implement the emission reduction target, Mr. Toepfer says that although China is facing a number of challenges, such as a vast land, income inequality, economic development, etc., the country is still willing to increase its efforts in environmental protection and we should feel happy about it. However, he stressed that there is a long and winding road for China should it wish to pursue this direction. In his speech, Mr. Toepfer said that in order to improve the economy we should develop, and development needs energy. However, in the present scenario of rapid population growth, the way energy is being used would not be sufficient to meet demand. Only by exploring new energy sources that the world could continue to develop and one of the better ways is not to be confine ourselves to using fossil fuels. With regards to the issue of supply and demand, while using energy, we should also endeavour to improve energy efficiency. In addition, he also said that although at present there are smart grids, smart electricity meters and new concepts of energy storage, however, the technology is still in its infancy, but he was deeply confident that in the near future, human beings would be able to master new technologies and push the concept forward for a broader application. For related enquiries, please contact MIECF Secretary, telephone (853) 8798-9675, fax (853) 2872-7123, e-mail miecf@ipim.gov.mo, or navigate the following MIECF official website: www.macaomiecf.com
…

Up to 6:00 p.m. on the second day (1 April) of the 2011 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Exhibition and Forum (2011 MIECF), the Organisers have arranged 253 business matching and negotiation sessions, which resulted in the signing of 16 co-operation projects. Projects signed involved co-operation in the establishment of eco-friendly vehicles factory, sales of eco-friendly vehicles, organic brown rice and organic buckwheat food, recycle of scrapped vehicles, E-waste and glass, and implementation of CPS solar power IOT System. Most of the protocols were signed by Macao and mainland China companies or institutions, while the other signing parties were mostly from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Canada. The exhibition will be opened to the public tomorrow from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For related enquiries, please contact the MIECF Secretariat at tel. (853) 8798-8675, fax (853) 2872-7123, e-mail miecf@ipim.gov.mo or navigate the following official MIECF website: www.macaomief.com
…

According to the monitoring data of Gamma Radiation recorded for the past 24 hours (31st March 16:01 till 1st April 16:00) by the Taipa Grande Station of the Macao Meteorological Bureau, the Gamma-ray absorbed dose rate per minute ranges between 0.1178 and 0.1291μGy/h (micro Gray / hour) which is far more below the warning level of 0.35μGy/h. The Macao Meteorological Bureau will continue to pay close attention to the radiation level in Macao. If any abnormalities being discovered, we will release related message to the public immediately and inform relevant government departments to adopt relative contingency measures.
…

Owing to rain and flooding in Thailand, Macao Post announced that all mail delivery services (including Correspondence, Printed Matters, Small Packet, Parcel and EMS) from Macao to the areas bearing the following postal codes are subject to delay until further notice. Postal Codes
80xxx, 81xxx, 84xxx, 85xxx, 86xxx, 90xxx, 92xxx and 93xxx Thank you for your kind attention.
…

Tickets for the programmes of the 22nd Macao Arts Festival (MAF) have been on sale since 27th March, and several of the most popular shows quickly sold to full capacity. Due to this overwhelming demand, five MAF programmes will enjoy additional performances, and tickets for these extended runs go on sale this coming Saturday (2nd April) at 10am, available at all Kong Seng Ticketing Outlets. Two family programmes have been extended. Ti-tó-tis – Dance and Music for Babies by Passos e Compassos (Portugal) receives four additional performances running 16th to 19th May at 6pm. The other is The Ten Brothers by the Little Mountain Arts Association, which is extended for one additional performance on 1st May at 4pm. In addition, tickets to local dramas have been highly sought-after by audiences. The House of the Vagrants by Step Out is extended for one extra show on 6th May at 8pm, and Twelfth Night in Macao, from the Hiu Kok Drama Association, is extended for an additional performance on 22nd May at 8pm. The drama Flowers for Algernon, staged by Theatre Farmers, runs for one more evening, 27th May at 8pm. Please do not miss out on this special second chance to attend these highly anticipated shows. Tickets for each of these additional performances go on sale this coming Saturday at 10am, available at all Kong Seng Ticketing Outlets. Telephone and online bookings will be available from 1pm the same day. Tickets for the children's performance Ti-tó-tis – Music and Dance for Babies are limited to a maximum of 4 per performance, per person. On the first day of sales, tickets for all other additional performances are limited to a maximum of 10 per performance, per person. Furthermore, there is a 40% discount on the purchase of tickets for at least 4 different performances and a 20% discount offered for using one of the MAF designated bank credit cards. Detailed information about the MAF is available in the MAF booklet and on the official website: www.icm.gov.mo/fam.
…

Overseas exhibitors from different business sectors participate in the current edition of Macao International Environmental Cooperation Forum and Exhibition (2011MIECF) and their representatives are unanimous in their view that their participation could lead them to the vast Chinese market and thus encounter new business opportunities. Each edition of the Macao International Environmental Cooperation Exhibition and Forum attracts many overseas buyers and this year is no exception. At the Overseas Zone, located near the entrance, representatives of local enterprises and from Mainland China come frequently for information. Bjoern Brandmeier, manager of TuV Nord, a German company, said that his participation aims to contact potential clients from different lines of business and many people have expressed interest in his company´s products and services, which include carbon reduction technologies, energy management and consultancy. Furthermore, he disclosed that he has established contacts with many Chinese enterprises, such as a company engaged in cars and energy management from Mainland China, and therefore believes that the future would bring in more business opportunities from China. He also believes that the quality of this year´s edition of the MIECF has improved as the Organizer was able to focus on clients interested in the procurement of green technology and that the contacts that they established are from their target groups. Ellen Genetello, sales engineer of one of the exhibitors, Waterleau, from Belgium, said that at the first day of the exhibition she was contacted by several companies interested in the services provided by her company. After a day´s work, she said that she had participated as exhibitors in several editions of the MIECF and that taking account the continuous development of Macao in recent years, new buildings being erected need different energy saving solutions, and thus the demand for related technologies in Macao would be significant. The Commercial Vice-Consul of Czech Republic, Roman Seidl is simultaneously representing four Czech companies participating as exhibitors in the MIECF. Mr. Seidl said that Macao is the best platform to enter the Chinese market, especially the market in South China. “In fact, some of the companies that I represent already have branches in Beijing, but they still come to the MIECF given that their Beijing branch focus on business from northern China while the handling of business in the southern part of belongs naturally to the Hong Kong and Macao area”. Mr. Seidl made a comparison between MIECF and similar fairs held in the surrounding cities and consider the fairs held in Macao are the best given that they can attract buyers from different provinces and municipalities of the mainland and thus provide to the overseas exhibitors an opportunity to know their needs and consequently provide related services to and establish technology exchange with the related Chinese buyers. For further enquiries, please contact the MIECF Secretariat at telephone (853) 8798'9675, fax (853) 2872'7123, e-mail miecf@ipim.gov.mo or the following official MIECF website: www.macaomiecf.com.
…