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China Eastern, partners to set up new airline on Hainan

The registered capital of the new airline will account for 3-6 billion yuan (from about $ 42- 846 million)

Sanya Phoenix International Airport Civil Aviation Resources/Chen Lu

Sanya Phoenix International Airport

© Civil Aviation Resources/Chen Lu

SANYA, June 15. /TASS/. China Eastern Airlines, together with four partners, including the largest China-based travel agency Trip.com Group, will set up an international airline for Hainan's free trade port, www.hinews.cn reported.

The framework agreement on cooperation which will be called Sanya International Airline was signed between the parties last Saturday. At least 51% of the shares in this joint venture will be owned by China Eastern, the rest of the shares will be owned by Juneyao Airlines, Trip.Com, as well as Hainan Transportation Investment Holding and Sanya Development Holdings. The registered capital of the new airline, according to Shanghai Itzai Global, will account for 3-6 billion yuan (from about $ 42- 846 million).

This agreement became part of a package of documents totaling 6.4 billion yuan (about $ 903 million) signed on Saturday for various projects in Haikou. These are 35 agreements relating to the construction of a free trade port, industrial development and public services.

Earlier, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Сhinese State Council published the “General Program for the Establishment of a Free Port on Hainan,” according to which the island’s administration intends to create an effective system to fulfill a number of important social and economic goals by 2025, and within 10 years to decisively enhance the innovative mechanisms for the region's development.

In April 2018, President Xi Jinping said that the Chinese authorities intend to actively involve Hainan in globalization and to draw foreign investors to the island province. By 2050, according to the authorities, the island should become a unique international cluster with an advanced economy, developed tourism, top-notch scientific, technical and financial potential, and modern medicine. The branches of the best universities and offices of the most powerful corporations in the world will be located on the Island of Hainan.

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