Firm that built islands gets Philippines deal: A Chinese state-owned company said to have been involved in Beijing's island-building in the South China Sea signed a deal to construct islands for rival claimant the Philippines as its President Rodrigo Duterte visited last week, reports said.
CCCC Dredging will create four artificial islands totalling 208 hectares of reclaimed land in Davao, the port city on the southern island of Mindanao where Duterte was mayor, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.
The islands will spread along eight kilometres of coastline and be used for government buildings, commercial spaces, residences, ports and industry in a project to be completed by 2019, it added.
The deal with the Philippines' Mega Harbour Port and Development was one of several inked as Duterte paid a state visit to China last week, when Beijing offered $9 billion in soft loans for development projects.
