We expect to see more joint ventures in third countries. This is a trend that we anticipate to grow very quickly. I noted earlier that many top American and European companies are making their presence felt in this region. These are international players with strong technical expertise, good financial management and an impressive track record. Even many of these big players are expanding their scope of services through acquisition, strategic alliances and joint ventures.
Consortia formed among companies from different countries can operate from a position of strength.
They can offer a much wider range of services, from design, construction and management to financing. They also have the financial strength to take on bigger projects, and the financial risks are spread out. Singapore has a number of fairly large construction and consultancy firms. Given the open economy of Singapore, they are well exposed to international competition, as well as to the best technologies and construction equipment brought in by foreign firms. These established Singapore companies have also been active regional players and, therefore, have a good knowledge about the region.