The Taipei Financial Center tries to change its luck

Taipei Times: Rumor has it that the Taipei Financial Center (台北金融大樓), as part of its public relations overhaul, is planning to change its name to Taipei 101?

Terry Shen (沈雲飛): We haven't formally made the name change yet. But when the formal announcement is made [in July] it will be called "Taipei 101." [The reason being that] in Taipei too many buildings have already used the name Taipei Financial Center. Also, we want a name that is catchy and easy to remember. The name also reflects the project, in other words, the number of floors in the facility.

TT: Not counting the height of the mast, where will Taipei 101 stand in comparison with the world's tallest buildings?

Shen: At 508m of inhabitable floor area, we may come in as the world's tallest. But we get our actual ranking from the Tower 100 Council. They are a US organization that determines the rankings of the world's 100 tallest structures.

TT: Who are the biggest shareholders in the project and which of these are major anchor tenants in the tower?

Shen: The biggest single shareholder is China United Trust & Investment Corp (中聯信託) -- they own a 20 percent stake. The next leading shareholder is the China Development Industrial bank (中華開發銀行). The most important anchor tenant of the facility will be the Taiwan Stock Exchange (證交所) -- they will occupy about seven floors in the building, or about 6,000 pings. Also one of our shareholders -- Chinatrust Commercial Bank (中國信託銀行) -- have agreed to take nearly the same amount of space, but they have not yet signed any formal agreements.

Actually, we think some of the best space should be reserved for foreign tenants, such as investment banks, securities houses or accounting firms. We hope the building will have an international make-up of companies, not just local firms -- that's not our target, because it will be an international financial center.

TT: What kind of interest have foreign businesses shown in making Taipei 101 their home?

Shen: Usually, before making a big investment in a major real-estate project, clients won't make their intentions known. But based on discussions with the top real-estate agents, like Jones Lang LaSalle or Colliers Jardine, they say that almost all foreign players -- say for example securities houses -- have long set their current rental contracts with landlords to terminate close to the scheduled 2004 completion date of Taipei 101. So their intentions are clear. But I think that the last six months prior to completion will be the most crucial time for them to decide whether to move in or not.

TT: That 2004 completion date is already two years behind schedule. What were the biggest delays in the project and what makes you believe you can keep on track for 2004?

Shen: The podium tower, which is basically the shopping center complex that forms the first few ground levels of the complex that surrounds the main tower, underwent several design changes, which pushed back the schedule of the retail area. Of course, the March 31 earthquake also delayed the whole opening schedule. In addition, about two-and-a-half years ago we had a problem with the height, in relation to Sungshan Airport's flight patterns. At the time the question was whether the structure should be lowered to 90 floors and we had to do an extensive review of any structural design changes that may have been necessary. This also delayed the project.