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RAPAPORT... China-based Kingold Jewelry Inc. acquired the operating rights for 66,666 square meters (717,587 square feet) of industrial land to develop the Wuhan Kingold Jewelry International Industry Park in the Jiangan district for $164 million (CNY 1 billion). Kingold expects construction to be completed by mid-2015 and the entrance to the sprawling facility will be at No. 12 Han Huang Road, Jiang'An District, Wuhan, a premier section on the north shore of the Yangtze River. The Wuhan Kingold Jewelry International Industry Park is intended to create a major hub for the jewelry industry in the central region of China, according to Kingold. It will provide a place where businesses and trading activity can mingle with manufacturing, wholesale, and retail shopping. Kingold will relocate part of its production facility to this industrial park. Kingold plans to construct seven buildings on the parcel, with total useable floor space of approximately 192,000 square meters (2.07 million square feet), 36,000 square meters (389,000 square feet) of which is anticipated to be used as the company's product showroom, product research and development center and corporate headquarters. The remaining area of 42,000 square meters (452,000 square feet) will house retail shops and 114,000 square meters (1.23 million square feet) is expected to be leased as office space to domestic and international jewelry companies. Zhihong Jia, the chairman of Kingold Jewelry, said, "We are very pleased to announce this landmark event in Kingold's history, which we believe will help position our company to be a vertically-integrated, leading manufacturer of gold jewelry and provider of wholesale (and retail) jewelry in Central China. We expect to utilize the land to create a new headquarters for the company and develop a 'Jewelry City.' This project will encompass all aspects of the gold manufacturing and distribution process, from development to retail sales. We believe Wuhan Kingold Jewelry International Industry Park will not only be a sought-after display area for well-known jewelry brands for both retail and wholesale distributors, but will also serve as an information exchange for a variety of participants in the jewelry industry. We expect it will also be a platform by which Kingold can build relationships with global jewelry companies. We believe this is the first step to creating a truly international enterprise and look forward to updating investors on this project's progress in the coming weeks and months."
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