CLP Holdings Limited (CLP) is pleased to be supporting a 10-year forest restoration programme of Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden Corporation (KFBG) to build scientific understanding of biodiverse forest restoration in Hong Kong and the wider South China region with a HK$10-million sponsorship.

The project involves the planting of up to 25,000 native trees of 200 different species or more, along with numerous shrubs and herbs, to restore 10 hectares of diverse upland tropical forest in the heart of KFBG's nature reserve.

We recognise our role in addressing the challenge of climate change and are decarbonising our operations across Asia Pacific to move towards our Climate Vision 2050 targets. We also see the potential of scientifically informed reforestation to contribute to nature-based solutions and biodiversity recovery and anticipate that our partnership with KFBG will establish best practice for the restoration of South China's lost forests,' said Mr David Simmonds, Chief Strategy, Sustainability and Governance Officer of CLP. The partnership, which began in October 2022, is expected to lead to a deeper understanding of how nature can be revitalised in degraded tropical landscapes by facilitating the reintroduction of potentially hundreds of species of rare and threatened native plants. Positive knock-on effects are anticipated for pollinators and other wildlife. The project will also provide scientific insights into the role of diverse, new native forests in sequestering carbon. Research findings will be shared with community stakeholders, including policymakers and academic institutions. KFBG's Head of Flora Conservation, Dr Stephan Gale, added, 'KFBG's forest restoration programme is more than simply planting trees - we are planting an ecosystem. Our botanists find seeds of rare native species in remote corners of Hong Kong, our horticulturalists germinate them and grow them on as seedlings in our nurseries, and our ecologists experiment with ways to plant them in the right place and in the right combination on our hillside. Only by doing this can we restore native canopy cover and nourish a sustainable, healthy ecosystem that will lead to the return of diverse wildlife, from insects and birds, to fungi and other soil microorganisms.'

Through 2023, the first 3,000 trees of this joint project will be planted at the uppermost corner of KFBG's land, at its southeastern boundary with Tai Mo Shan Country Park, following careful species selection based on KFBG's site assessments. Associated ecological experiments will be set up to observe and measure the growth of different species. The work is based on KFBG's more than two decades of applied science in conducting reforestation, which helps restore canopy cover and a functioning forest ecosystem teeming with native wildlife in Hong Kong.

About CLP Group

The CLP Group is one of the largest investor-owned power businesses in Asia Pacific with investments across Hong Kong, Mainland China, Australia, India, Southeast Asia and Taiwan. Hong Kong-listed CLP Holdings Limited is the holding company for the CLP Group, which has a diversified portfolio of generating assets that uses a wide range of fuels including coal, gas, nuclear and renewable sources. Through CLP Power Hong Kong Limited, the Group operates a vertically integrated electricity supply business that provides a highly reliable supply of electricity to 80% of Hong Kong's population. The CLP Group is the largest external investor in the energy sector in Mainland China. The Group's wholly-owned subsidiary EnergyAustralia is a leading integrated energy company in Australia, providing gas and electricity to about 2.45 million households and businesses. Apraava Energy, in which CLP has a 50% interest, is one of India's biggest renewable energy producers with operations in power generation and transmission. CLP Holdings is included in the Global Dow - a 150-stock index of the world's leading blue-chip companies, the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific Index (DJSI Asia Pacific), the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific 40 Index (DJSI Asia Pacific 40), the Hang Seng Corporate Sustainability Index Series and the FTSE4Good Index series.

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