The first joint venture comprehensive hospital with a foreign controlling stake has been completed in Beijing. 

SK Hospital Beijing, an endeavor launched by South Korean telecommunications and energy giant SK and its Chinese counterparts, was completed on Tuesday and will be opened in March.

"We are pinning high hopes on China's medical service market. That is why we set up the hospital with our Chinese partners. It is also an important step to diversify our business here in China," Cheng Xie, president of SK China, said.

SK is covering 70 percent of the 29 million yuan (US$3.5 million) price tag for the hospital, while the International Health Exchange and Cooperation Centre (IHECC) under China's Ministry of Health and a Fuzhou-based company are footing the remainder.

"China's medical market is opening further to foreign capital, and the opening of the SK Hospital Beijing serves as a tangible example," said IHECC Director Li Hongshan.

SK spent nearly two years conducting a feasibility study and researching Beijing's high and middle-end medical markets.

"Our research shows that the two market sectors will be highly competitive, but have great potential. That is why we have to act swiftly to get the facilities set up before 2004 and not let our chances slip," Choi Chang-iK, chief executive officer of SK Hospital Beijing, said.

(China Daily January 1, 2004)