Agriculture Maniac

Chapter 539 Pipelines, Bidding

Austin, Texas.

The chairman's office of the Carlisle Group.

The night is deep.

Old Bu, sitting in front of the computer, took off his glasses, looked exhausted, picked up a glass of refreshing soup and drank most of it, then leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest.

The Bush family has three channels for external investment.

One is the Carlisle Group, which controls Marubeni Corporation, Wan Hong Investment, Unilever, Carlyle Group, and United Defense, which has already been sold.

One is the management committee of the Old Bush Fund, which has invested in BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, Blackstone Group, and others.

One is a family business, including Houston Oil, Texas Energy, Texas Instruments, Texas A&M, Texas Ternary Lithium Battery, and so on.

In the past five or six years, in order to compete with the Smith family, the Old Brooks family has been continuously cashing out from the Carlisle Group and continuously investing in large investment groups such as BlackRock and Vanguard.

Later, in competition with the oil tycoon, he continued to cash out from the Carlisle Group and kept investing in Houston Oil, Texas Energy, and other companies.

To this day, the Brooks family’s stake in the Carlisle Group has quietly fallen to 37%, only 12% higher than the second-largest shareholder, the Harden family.

If the second largest shareholder joins forces with the third largest shareholder—the oil royal family—the Brooks family will lose control of the Carlisle Group.

Indeed, not long ago, the minority shareholders of the Carlisle Group almost sold United Defence to England Aerospace Systems behind his back, the major shareholder's back.

Even more, the Harden family plans to sell 25% of its shares to the Elaine family of England, and the oil country royal family plans to sell 21% of its shares to Yu Sanyuan.

The whole world knows that the Elaine family rose to power through three branches, and that Countess Elaine and Countess Elaine have a close relationship with Yu Sanyuan.

If these two deals are completed, the Carlisle Group will definitely be under the Yu family name in the future.

Therefore, Old Bu urgently drew a large amount of cash from various channels and companies, trying every means to repurchase the Carlisle Group shares that he had previously cashed out and sold, and then increased his shareholding to 51% to secure his position as the largest shareholder in order to prevent trouble from happening at home.

Now that things are settled, there are investments to be made in the East, Europe, oil-producing countries, and Russia…

"We only have $6 million in available funds left?"

The secretary confirmed, "Yes, Mr. Bu, and all the loans that were due have been taken out, and all the debts that were due have been recovered."

$6 million, equivalent to 48 billion RMB, is no small sum, no matter where it is placed.

However, in an environment dominated by large capital, let alone 600 million or 6 billion US dollars, even 60 billion is insignificant.

Don't you see, when Old Smith borrowed money from Yu Sanyuan, it was always starting at three to five hundred billion?

Old Bu opened his eyes. "So we have to postpone all investment plans, including canceling the competition plan we've developed against Sanyuan Agriculture in the international and Eastern markets?"

“Yes!” the secretary confirmed again.

Upon hearing this, Old Bu's face turned ashen.

Yu Sanyuan has been arrogant for five or six years.

The fact that global capital is taking advantage of the oil-producing countries' accession to the WTO to gang up on Sanyuan Agriculture in the international market is an excellent opportunity to give Yu Sanyuan a headache.

Unexpectedly, just as the business battle began, they had to retreat.

It's like the NBA draft: you warm up for ages, ready to unleash your full potential, but before you even get on the court, your energy's already depleted.

Furthermore, everyone else is eager to make a big splash, but we are quietly retreating. What will others think?
I'm afraid they'll start accusing the Bush family of being 'colluding with three different people' again.

Old Bu sat up, displeased, and said, "That's not what the initial risk assessment said!"

The secretary replied seriously, "This matter is somewhat complicated."

He then produced a series of documents and continued, "When we were investing in the oil country, we also considered that Yu Sanyuan might take the opportunity to acquire United Defense, but we did not expect that the shareholders of Carlisle Group would secretly turn against us. As a result, we had to raise funds to repurchase the shares."

"When we invested in Ice Bear, we considered the competition from the three major industries, but we did not expect that the biggest oligarch of Ice Bear, Abrams, who controlled Ice Bear Oil Heavy Industry, would die. As a result, in order to strengthen Houston Oil and Texas Energy, we had to raise funds to seize their international supply business and prevent the three major industries from taking advantage of us."

"Furthermore, the anti-Sanyuan alliance is squeezing the international market for Sanyuan products. We considered Sanyuan Agriculture's counterattack in the Eastern market, but we didn't expect Yu Sanyuan to obtain natural gas from Western Siberia and, under the guise of infrastructure construction, use pipeline laying, pipeline access to households, and pipeline ownership to drive out our LNG business in the Asia-Pacific region, which we operate through Marubeni Corporation and Wan Hong Investment. For the sake of the Japanese and South Asian markets, we have to increase investment and compete with Sanyuan Energy for 'pipeline access to households'..."

"Or, to put it another way, in the East, the vast majority of natural gas pipelines are laid by companies and owned by those companies. If Company A's pipeline is laid in Community A, it is impossible to lay Company B's pipeline due to the cost. Therefore, Community A can only use Company A's natural gas in the future. This is equivalent to whoever lays the pipeline completely taking over Community A."

"In order to capture more market share, it is natural to lay pipelines first."

"Furthermore, the more pipelines are laid, the more users there are, the more profits are generated, and the better the service quality can be improved."

"For example, in the past, to buy natural gas, you had to go to the local gas company, hand over the magnetic card to the finance department, and after the finance department recharged it, the customer would take the magnetic card home and swipe it on the gas meter."

"Now that gas companies have money, they can easily install ternary communication network equipment in financial terminals and user gas meters, and link it to the three-system terminals. Users can not only know their gas balance in advance, but also use the terminal to purchase online and complete the recharge in a dozen seconds."

"The same principle applies to heating, electricity, water, paying phone bills, and paying internet bills."

"It can be said that if we want to maintain similar businesses in the Eastern market, we must participate in Eastern infrastructure construction."

Old Bu pondered for a moment, "You mean, if we want to keep our natural gas business in the Eastern market, we have to lay natural gas pipelines to the East?"

"Yes, and according to the new regulations introduced by Dongfang, if we don't lay natural gas pipelines, we won't get market access. In other words, without pipelines, the company's qualifications are insufficient."

"... "

"Furthermore, Sanyuan Agriculture, through its self-supported private natural gas company, aims to ensure that every rural household in the North China Plain has access to natural gas by 08, and then capture the peripheral markets of county towns and urban areas..."

Yu Sanyuan said in a meeting, "Old Huang's theory of 'city-sucking' is absolutely correct. In the future, cities in the East, whether small counties or metropolises, will expand outwards. By securing the natural gas pipelines on the city's outskirts in advance, we can essentially deliver business directly to our doorsteps once the city expands."

Old Bu picked up the refreshing soup again, "So, we must use the money we earn from the East, under the guise of laying natural gas pipelines and seizing the natural gas market, to throw it back at the East in order to earn even more."

"Yes."

"It's like a recurring theme! Twenty years ago, I invested in Dongfang, and Lao Ren said I could earn more by investing in Shenzhen. I invested, and I earned even more. Ten years ago, I planned to withdraw my money, and Lao Ren said I could earn even more by investing in Dongfang's high-tech industries—crude oil refining, the banking system, and mineral processing. I invested, and I earned even more. Now that Lao Ren is finally dead, I plan to withdraw more and more money, but Yu Sanyuan jumps out and sets an example, saying that investing in Dongfang's natural gas pipelines could earn even more. But I already have enough red-chip cash; I really don't want to earn any more!"

"In order to acquire resources, the East transferred its foreign exchange reserves to Yu Sanyuan, who then lent the foreign exchange to Old Smith. Currently, the East's large-scale exchange channels have been closed, and the internal increase and external depreciation of the red banknotes has lasted for more than three years. Now it has reached its peak and entered a period of depreciation. If we do not spend them, the total value of the red banknotes we hold will decrease by at least 20% every year."

Old Bu didn't want to lay natural gas pipelines to the East because Texas hadn't even completed the pipeline installation for homes.

He slammed his fist on the desk indignantly, "What's he doing getting involved with natural gas?!"

The secretary hesitated slightly, "According to the intelligence provided by Commissioner Smith, Yu Sanyuan said something similar to Lao Yuan, the head of the ADM special research group."

"Ok?"

"He (Old Bush) is an arms dealer, why is he involved in natural gas? It would be better to allow Old Smith to invest in the Eastern Gas Pipeline. Anyway, the two don't get along, and this can also curb the Japanese capital controlled by the Bush family."

"He's quite good at maintaining balance."

Old Bu was so angry he didn't want to talk.

The secretary inquired, "Sir, what about the two matters concerning the postponement of the international market strategy and the investment in the Eastern natural gas pipeline?"

"I will think about it."

"We don't have enough funds, so it seems we don't need to consider it."

Old Bu remained expressionless and did not respond. He put down the stimulating soup and asked, "What is Yu Sanyuan doing?"

"I went to a construction site in Dongshanfu, ostensibly to experience life there, but actually to check the construction quality."

“The factory has a factory affairs team, a patrol team, and a supervision team from Sanyuan Construction. There’s no need for him to investigate.”

"It is said that the construction cost of Dongshan Prefecture is very high, perhaps he wants to find out more about it himself."

"Even if it's high enough, it's not as high as ours. You might as well come to Texas and take a look." "Then... sir, what about the two things: temporarily suspending the international market strategy and investing in the Eastern Gas Pipeline?"

"You've already said that you don't have enough funds, so there's no need to consider it. Besides, the RMB is entering a period of depreciation, so you can't not invest. Do you really expect me to make the decision?"

"Your signature is required."

"... "

...

Dongshan Prefecture, Jingshi West Road.

On the construction site, buried under thick snow, Yu Yang carried a small megaphone, directing the excavators, the loading of materials, and the welding of pipes...

After lunch, the foreman of the construction site, the same thin, white-haired old man we had seen before, hurriedly came over with a briefcase.

"Boss, there are three projects up for bidding this afternoon. Are you going?"

"Of course I'll go."

"I've already contacted the auto dealership and rented an Audi. We'll be leaving soon... And your bodyguards?"

"They have their own cars."

"Okay, boss."

The gaunt old man had lived most of his life and had a keen eye. He had sensed that the young man in front of him was no ordinary person when they first met at the construction site gate.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to the door, brought the other person in to verify the technology, and then not even checked their ID.

The young people in front of me are 'grabbing' my construction site, most likely to cover up something else.

So the skinny old man had a sudden inspiration. He went back to his dormitory-office room, pulled out a stack of contracts, and found the bidding authorization documents for the project that his company was qualified to bid on but could not possibly obtain.

Now, let's test the waters a little...

As expected, the other party was aiming for a bidding process.

ten minutes later.

An Audi A6L provided by Runhua Auto City was parked at the entrance of the construction site.

The gaunt old man went first and opened the back door.

Yu Yang crouched down and crawled inside, sitting behind the driver's seat, with the gaunt old man sitting next to him.

Just as they were about to start the car, Changfu, who had been hiding somewhere, came to the front of the car and gestured for the driver to get out.

The factory secretary who came with Chang Fu sat in the passenger seat.

Ignoring all of this, the gaunt old man said, "Boss, these three bids are all projects in the city center."

One project involves main pipeline construction, including high-pressure pipeline procurement and road restoration. The main pipeline cost is approximately 300-500 yuan/meter, labor is 80 yuan/meter, road restoration is 35 yuan/meter, traffic control is 5600 yuan/day, wall penetration is calculated separately, design fee is 3800 yuan, and supervision fee is 8% of the project price…

The project is 25.37 kilometers long and has a construction period of six months. I initially bid 1513.9 million yuan. After deducting all expenses, I could make a profit of about 30 yuan. However, they asked for 150 million yuan as a "tea money" fee, so I gave up the bid.

The other two projects involved the construction of stainless steel gas pipelines. Stainless steel pipelines cost 80-120 RMB per meter… I bid 864 million RMB, but other companies changed the stainless steel to steel in their bids, reducing the pipeline cost to approximately 30-60 RMB per meter, half the price. We couldn't compete with them.”

Yu Yang asked curiously, "I heard that the gas project in Dongshan Prefecture was contracted out by Runhua Gas from Sanyuan Energy, and then subcontracted to you for construction. Why is Dongshan Prefecture the organizer of this bidding meeting?"

"It may be for supervision, regulation, or oversight."

"The supervisor's fee is 8% of the project cost, what about the other two?"

"Supervision 2%, regulation 3%."

"Wow, the construction cost was 1000 million, and they just took 130 million?"

"This doesn't even include the 9% value-added tax, 7% urban construction tax, 12% surcharge, 20% withholding tax on labor remuneration, 25% of the final profit, and 20% dividend tax, which means that cash withdrawals from the company account also have to be paid... Taking the main pipeline construction as an example, if 1500 million yuan of project funds are allocated, I might only receive a maximum of 650 million yuan. After construction starts, I will only receive about 30 yuan. Then I will have to pay them an extra 150 million yuan as a 'tea money' fee."

"That's too ruthless. This is even more ruthless than Old Dong harming his son."

"Old Dong? These bastards are not even worthy of being compared to Old Dong. They're not even fit to carry Old Dong's shoes."

The gaunt old man cursed and swore all the way, and it took him an hour and a half to finally arrive at the city center of Dongshan Prefecture.

"Those two stainless steel pipe laying projects mainly involve five residential communities here: Railway Yuhan, Yuhan North District, Yuhan South District, Yuhan East District, and Dongshan Military Retiree Community. Of course, the project cost for the pipe installation in each household needs to be calculated separately."

During their casual conversation, Audi arrived at the Municipal Intermediate People's Court, where the bidding meeting was being held.

The gaunt old man walked into the venue, looked around, and seemed a little dazed.

Yu Yang asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

"There are fewer familiar faces and a lot more unfamiliar faces."

"Go and find out."

"Ah."

After the gaunt old man left.

Yu Yang casually found a seat, took out his SY handheld console, and pretended to take pictures, scanning the scene.

On the left is the Pacific Oil and Gas delegation.

It has no connection with Pacific Insurance; it is an important subsidiary of the Singapore Golden Eagle Group, whose business covers oil and gas exploration, LNG liquefaction plants, LNG receiving terminal management, LNG terminal sales, and LNG tanker delivery.

As early as 03, the company entered Dongfang, and like the South Korean KS Group, whose business covered Beijing and Tianjin Port, it was among the first foreign companies to participate in the Dongfang natural gas project.

Currently operating the Jianfuxia Gas Power Plant, it has secured gas supply business in approximately 16 fourth- and fifth-tier cities, including Jianfu and Suzhou.

However, because the company failed to secure the Ice Bear Far East natural gas project, its gas price was twice as high as that of KS Group, which owns the Ice Bear Far East gas pipeline.

Yu Yang moved the camera.

The middle one is BP, the British oil company.

It maintains cooperative relationships with companies such as CNOOC, Beihang New Energy Group, Zhejiang Energy Natural Gas, and Hong Kong and China Gas, and its business covers the entire Dongguan area.

CNOOC needs no introduction; its strength is formidable.

ENN Group is also a major energy enterprise in the East.

Zhejiang Energy is a state-owned enterprise in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

Hong Kong and China Gas Holdings Limited (HKGH) is owned by Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong's richest man.

Therefore, BP, the British oil company, is extremely powerful.

Just as Yu Yang was about to turn the camera around again, the gaunt old man returned.

"Boss, something's a bit strange. Most of the companies that came this time are foreign-funded."

"There's nothing strange about it. With the rise of private capital, wages need to be paid everywhere, and the printing presses are running all night. More than a dozen new ones have been added... The RMB is about to enter a period of devaluation. All these foreign investors are holding a lot of RMB. If they don't spend it, keeping it in the bank is a loss."

"In that case, we can't compete with them."

"Whether they compete or not is irrelevant. I want to see if they dare to ask foreigners for 'tea money'."

(End of this chapter)