Sail across the sea

Chapter 575 Consider whether or not to participate
Of the 37 companies that attended the ceremony, 15 expressed their intention to cooperate with Cangfu, while the other 22 claimed that they could not make the decision and needed to go back and discuss it with their factory leaders, as well as consult with their superior authorities.

Of course, these 22 companies were quite polite in their remarks, repeatedly expressing their admiration for Cangfu's selfless act. However, Gao Fan felt that most of them probably wouldn't choose to cooperate with Cangfu, for various reasons, which Gao Fan didn't bother to guess.

Of the 15 companies that expressed interest in cooperation, 14 claimed they had already made long-distance calls to their superiors for approval, and that the superiors had given their in-principle consent to the cooperation. Cangfu prepared cooperation agreements for them to take back to their respective factories. If they ultimately decided to cooperate, they were to stamp the cooperation agreement and send it back.

Given that Gao Fan has stated it will only provide upgrade services for 20 units, Cangfu requires all interested companies to return their agreements as soon as possible; late submissions will disqualify them. Considering the current delays in the postal system, a decision based on postmark order has also been stipulated.

One company signed an agreement with Cangfu on the spot: Zhankou Chemical Plant. Gao Fan himself had done things like bringing the company seal to meetings before, so it wasn't surprising.

Duan Shuangxi specifically requested a meeting with Gao Fan for a private conversation. Afterwards, Old Duan was beaming with joy, as if he had discovered some rare treasure. However, he refused to reveal anything to anyone who asked, claiming that his happiness had nothing to do with Canghai Chemical, but was simply a personal celebration.

After seeing off the officials and company representatives, Gao Fan made some arrangements within the company before setting off for Shuainan, where one more step in the fluorochemicals matter needed to be taken care of.

In the chief engineer's office of Shuainan Chemical Equipment Company, Pan Yue, whose temples were already half gray, received Gao Fan. There was also a guest who had arrived early in the office, Yu Guorong, the chairman of Renqiao City Guoguang Chemical Group Company.

"Chief Engineer Pan, it's been years since I last saw you, and you look even more energetic. General Manager Yu, it's been three years since we last met. Last time I went to Renqiao, I made a special trip to visit you at Guoguang Company, but you happened to be abroad on an inspection tour."

Gao Fan shook hands with Pan Yue and Yu Guorong with respect, and spoke quite casually.

"I already addressed the issue with the people in the group's office about what happened last time. I was abroad and not at home, and they didn't properly entertain General Manager Gao, which was extremely rude. I told them that General Manager Gao is one of the company's leaders, and when he comes to the company, it's like he's coming home, so they must treat him well."

Yu Guorong pulled Gao Fan to sit down on the sofa, while he kept spouting nice words.

Yu Guorong originally ran a plastic products factory. Later, on Gao Fan's recommendation, he raised funds to build a small polyester plant with an annual output of 5000 tons, thus beginning his journey in producing chemical raw materials.

In 80s China, resources were extremely scarce. After the Guoguang Company's polyester plant went into operation, its products were always in short supply. It could be said that as long as they were produced, there was no worry about selling them.

Yu Guorong was a man of great courage. Seeing that polyester could make a lot of money, he borrowed money to build a second unit before the investment in the first unit was fully recovered, and then a third unit was built.

Ten years later, Guoguang Company had acquired six small polyester plants with an annual capacity of 30,000 tons, and its actual annual output even exceeded 30,000 tons. In the early 1990s, the international polyester market was experiencing a tight supply and high prices. In Southeast Asia, the price of polyester remained above US$950 per ton, while in the domestic market, the price exceeded RMB 5500 per ton. Guoguang Company's annual sales approached RMB 300 million, making it a leading private enterprise in Shuainan.

When Yu Guorong was building the first polyester plant, he specifically sought out Gao Fan and asked him to invest in the project, claiming that he didn't have enough money.

Yu Guorong did this because he knew nothing about polyester production; he entered the industry purely because he trusted Gao Fan's judgment. Bringing Gao Fan into the company was a way to bind him to the business and get him to offer advice and strategies.

Gao Fan understood Yu Guorong's meaning and invested 100 million yuan, acquiring a 10% stake in the company. This investment was made with Gao Fan's own money, therefore the shares were unrelated to the later establishment of Canghai Chemical. After Canghai Chemical was established, Gao Fan gave these shares to his mother, Ran Yuying, so that she could also experience what it was like to be a shareholder.

However, in Yu Guorong's view, these 10% shares belong to Gao Fan, so he would say that Gao Fan is also one of the company's leaders and can give orders within the company.

In the early years after Guoguang Company was established, Gao Fan was involved in the company's management quite a bit, put forward many suggestions on production and operation, and helped solve some major technical problems, which lived up to Yu Guorong's trust in him.

Later, as the company expanded and Yu Guorong became more familiar with the polyester market, Gao Fan, on the other hand, seemed less knowledgeable about the business and unable to offer any effective advice. He gradually faded from the company's daily operations, only occasionally exchanging information with Yu Guorong by phone. When he had to go to Renqiao, he would drop by the company, merely to make his presence known.

This time, Gao Fan came to Bitian, the provincial capital, to see Pan Yue. Beforehand, he called Yu Guorong to ask if he had time to visit Pan Yue as well. Yu Guorong, of course, didn't think that Gao Fan was just extending a polite invitation. Since he said that, he must have something to discuss with him. So he rushed from Renqiao to Bitian and waited for Pan Yue there in advance.

Yu Guorong was usually domineering and had the air of a successful entrepreneur. But in front of Gao Fan, he couldn't help but keep a low profile, because Gao Fan's abilities were simply beyond his reach.

"Mr. Yu, I've brought a new project with me this time. Would you like to consider participating? This project is semi-public and semi-private. The public part is that the state has requirements for it; it was commissioned by the State Economic Commission, the Ministry of Chemical Industry, and other units. The private part is that I myself am optimistic about this direction. If it goes well, it could generate at least several hundred million in revenue."

"However, my company has inherent weaknesses, with limited management talent, so I dare not expand too much. If Mr. Yu is interested, I would like to invite Mr. Yu to participate."

Gao Fan spoke frankly and openly.

Before Yu Guorong could speak, Pan Yue, sitting opposite them, spoke first, his tone still as if someone owed him eight strings of cash:
"Xiao Gao, what kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into now? Let me make this clear: you have a chance to make a fortune, so don't expect us water chemistry design institute to work for you for free. Design fees, material costs, labor costs, installation fees—I'm charging you the highest rates. You just said it yourself, this is at least several hundred million in revenue. It's not unreasonable for us water chemistry design institute to earn tens of millions, is it?"

(End of this chapter)