§ Mr. CabornTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will list the countries that have contracted to use the European transonic wind tunnel cycle programme; for what amount of time; and at what charge;
(2) when the European transonic wind tunnel cycle programme will be ready for use; and what access countries outside the partnership have to the tunnel;
(3) who are the European partners in the European transonic wind tunnel cycle programme; and what is each country's contribution in cash terms.
§ Mr. SainsburyThe partners in the European transonic wind tunnel (ETW) are United Kingdom, France Germany and the Netherlands.
They are providing funds in the following proportions:
300W
Construction/Commissioning/Calibration Per cent. Initial Operation Per cent. United Kingdom 28.0 31.0 France 28.0 31.0 Germany 38.0 31.0 Netherlands 6.0 7.0 Forecast final costs of the projects are as follows:
DM million Construction, commissioning and calibration 665.1 Initial operation 149.7 The partners' contributions are therefore as follows:
Construction/Commissioning/Calibration DM million Initial Operation DM million United Kingdom 186.23 46.41 France 186.23 46.41 Germany 252.74 46.41 Netherlands 39.90 10.47 ETW management has decided that the tunnel will be operated on a fully commercial basis, with charges set accordingly, and will be accessible to customers worldwide.
Initial operation is scheduled to commence on 1 July 1994, with full commercial operation planned from 1 July 1997.
The project has not yet reached the stage when contracts for use have been negotiated. Manufacturers in each partner country have, however, indicated their intention to use the tunnel in the early stages of initial operation.