November 14, 1996
(Industry, Trade and Technology)

Chilean companies to visit province in the new year

Mr. Furey, who met with electronic and print media in Santiago today to promote the province, said that he is confident that the keen level of interest between the companies will provide results and follow- up meetings. Since the mission began on Monday, he has met with government officials, toured several companies, participated in one-on- one meetings between investors and provided a presentation about Newfoundland and Labrador at the head office of Fundacion Chile, a non- profit organization formed to develop world-wide linkages between Chilean companies and firms from other parts of the world.

The participants of the Chilean mission say they are pleased with the results of meetings that have been arranged through Fundacion Chile. All company representatives have entered into discussions and pre- negotiations with counterparts in the Chilean business community.

Mr. Furey provided the following update on each company:

• Leo Quigley of Avalon Controls has met with a potential joint venture partner. His potential joint venture partner has indicated that Avalon Controls has proven expertise required in Chile. Mr. Quigley has been requested to visit several of his potential partner's clients to assess the possibilities for specific contracts.
• Rex Philpott of Cottles Island Lumber - Highland Homes has met with three companies. He has been requested to provide a quote on the sale of 50 homes (approximately in the range of $2 million). He is also engaged in ongoing discussions for a potential joint venture in Chile.
• Warren Strong of Strong Engineering Limited has an agreement in principle on three software packages associated with the forest industry for distribution in Canada. Talks are continuing with a potential joint venture partner from Chile and a software development company in Newfoundland. The potential exists for a technology transfer between his forest software system and a similar system in Chile. Both Mr. Philpott and Mr. Strong are presently visiting companies in Concepcion, a city in southern Chile.
• Terry Crane of C&W Industrial Fabrication and Marine has met with a potential joint venture partner involved in a number of initiatives including boat building and seafood harvesting equipment. This Chilean company has established business relationships in various South American markets.
• Duncan Finlayson of OCEANS Ltd. is concluding meetings with the Chilean Navy to discuss marine weather forecasting.
• Janice Cooper of Telemedicine/TETRA of Memorial University of Newfoundland has met with a number of resource people involved in the telecommunication sector. TETRA is expected to enter into a local venture agreement with a local telecommunications company and Fundacion Chile. The agreement will focus on distance education programs for the training of Chilean fishermen. She also met with Ministry of Health officials to discuss application of telemedicine technology in the health care sector. (Similarities between Newfoundland and Labrador and Chile in the health care sector include: providing access to specialized services to people in remote areas; Chile has pilot-tested two telemedicine projects and are involved in research and development in this area; and both areas face the challenge of providing continuing medical education to physicians and other allied health professionals practicing in other rural areas.)
• Michael Madden of the law firm Benson Myles has had meetings with members of a Chilean law firm with the intention to provide a full range of legal services to Chilean and Canadian companies doing business in both countries.
• Moya Cahill of MNC Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Fundacion Chile to provide ISO 9000 Quality Management Services and ISO 14000 Environmental Management services to the Forestry, Aquaculture and Agriculture Industries. She will officially open an office at Fundacion Chile in Santiago to provide these and other business management and engineering consulting services to the South American market.
• Rod MacPherson of CableCom and Moya Cahill of MNC, through their proven Newfoundland alliance, have created a joint venture with a telecommunication provider for Chile and Peru for the design and installation of high speed fibre optic telecommunication systems. With MNC's business and quality management systems and CableCom's technical expertise and marketing strategy, the partnership has succeeded in breaking into the South American markets.
• AbbaCom Logic is moving forward with a Chilean company to pursue the distribution of memory upgrade products for Chile and South American markets. Future discussions could lead to the development of a manufacturing facility in Chile.

Minister Furey leaves Friday for Uruguay where he will meet with the owner of Tsakos, a Greek shipping company that has expressed an interest in the St. John's Dockyard. He will then travel to Mexico City to witness the signing of a joint venture agreement between a Newfoundland company and a Mexican company.

Contact: John Doody, Director of Communications, (709) 729-0050.