Chapter 69: The First Step to Becoming an Infrastructure Madman

War offers all kinds of opportunities, some of which even arrive rather unexpectedly. This was precisely the case when Richard Yi-an was rummaging through technical journals in Britain, hunting for technologies with future developmental potential.

More often than not, when new technologies are first invented, hardly anyone recognizes the power stored within them, let alone senses that they represent the future. All that is required is targeted "salvage."

To facilitate this technological salvage, Richard even went so far as to establish a company in London, hiring professionals to systematically select certain technologies and then selectively import them. In particular, those overlooked new technologies were the company's primary focus.

Sometimes, certain technologies make their entrance at the wrong time. A case in point was the 250,000-kilowatt steam turbine generator unit developed by the British General Electric Company (GEC). This technology was undeniably at the absolute cutting edge of the world.

Even the United States, which had introduced a 200,000-kilowatt steam turbine generator unit back in the 1930s, possessed no equivalent technology.

It was just that this technology arrived at an awkward time—in 1940, at the height of the Battle of Britain, GEC completed the very first 250,000-kilowatt steam turbine generator unit. And then, there was no "then." Because of the threat of war, British authorities opted for distributed power generation—smaller, decentralized units to minimize the risk of bombing.

"...The greater the capacity of a power station's generating units, the more electricity it produces. It might seem cost-effective, but if it gets hit by a bomb, it is utterly finished. That is why that massive steam turbine generator unit has been left gathering dust in GEC's warehouse to this day. If you are willing, you can undoubtedly acquire this unit at a relatively cheap price."

Listening to Jason, an electrical engineer, introduce the equipment, Richard's interest was captured not just by this high-capacity unit, but by the underlying technology as well.

Two hundred and fifty thousand kilowatts!

It was unquestionably world-class cutting-edge technology!

The United States would not build a 300,000-kilowatt unit until the mid-1950s, while China would not produce a 200,000-kilowatt unit until the 1970s.

If this technology were imported, it would at least guarantee that his company would possess the world's most advanced generator unit technology in the future.

And what was electricity?

Electricity was the future!

The future development of North Borneo could not do without electricity; the reconstruction of Europe and the massive development of countries around the world were equally dependent on it. In fact, the very reason he was setting out to purchase power generation equipment right now was because post-war power facilities were exceptionally scarce—reconstruction efforts across the globe required vast numbers of generators.

The pace of reconstruction in many countries was determined not by whether they had sufficient manpower or supplies, but by whether they had an adequate electricity supply. For instance, the reason East Germany's reconstruction lagged behind West Germany's was precisely because the Soviets had dismantled and removed most of its power generation facilities.

It was precisely for this reason that Richard sought out power generation facilities, laying out power infrastructure in advance to ensure a stable electricity supply for future reconstruction. After all, to develop technology, infrastructure construction was paramount. In another world, why was China able to rise so rapidly?

Was it not because it was a lunatic of infrastructure?

And the most fundamental pillar of this infrastructure was transportation and electricity!

To rise, one must first begin by learning how to be an infrastructure fanatic!

And power plants were the bedrock of that infrastructure fanaticism!

Yet now, upon hearing Jason's words, Richard set his sights on the technology itself as well.

"Is GEC willing to transfer the technology?"

"Pardon?"

For a moment, Jason could not even react.

"I mean the technology for the 250,000-kilowatt generator unit. Are they willing to transfer it?"

Richard's words left Jason looking astonished.

"Sir, do you know how much electricity a 250,000-kilowatt unit can generate in a year? Theoretically, nearly one billion kilowatt-hours. For the entire electricity consumption of Great Britain, only a few dozen such units are needed. The market for these colossal units is extremely limited..."

As an electrical engineer, Jason could not help but chime in with a reminder.

"In the United States, the entire country has only two 200,000-kilowatt generator units. Its market is truly minuscule. Moreover, the war—after this great war, the bombing of power plants will ensure that no one in the world will ever build large-scale power stations again. Decentralization is the safest option!"

Although Jason stopped just short of saying... that thing is unsellable.

Yet in Richard's eyes, this was an absolute blessing.

"The more it is like this, the easier it is to buy at a low price!"

The less favored a technology was by the market, the cheaper it became. If everyone favored it, the technology would not only be difficult to acquire, but exorbitantly expensive as well.

In fact, during the first few years after the war, influenced by factors such as cost and safety, units exceeding 200,000 kilowatts were indeed not particularly popular. However, the electricity demands of European reconstruction ultimately drove the development of large-scale generator units, eventually making them the mainstream trend.

And this was the reason Richard decided to buy it. It was not merely because this single unit could generate nearly 700 million kilowatt-hours of electricity a year, but because such large generator units represented the future of generator technology. With it, the future North Borneo could truly enter the electrical age and seize the initiative in the post-war boom. After all, the development of industrial technology is inseparable from electricity.

"Let's enter negotiations with GEC. Buy both this 250,000-kilowatt unit and the technology licensing. What is your estimate of the cost?"

"Very well, boss."

Jason shrugged helplessly and said,

"Boss, the pre-war quote for that unit was 970,000 pounds. Considering that it has been sitting idle for years and the impact of the war, I believe we can secure it for 600,000 pounds."

"Does that include the technology licensing?"

"No problem at all. After all, for GEC, a 250,000-kilowatt unit is currently a money-losing asset with no visible return in sight. Our offer would actually help them clear the losses off their books."

Even as an electrical engineer, Jason was well-versed in the operating principles of capital markets. Even for a giant enterprise like GEC, book losses would still negatively impact their stock price.

Nevertheless, he still took care to point out:

"But boss, you must understand that market demand for it is virtually zero. This is very likely to be a losing business."

"A losing business? I never do losing business."

Buying a million-pound piece of equipment for 600,000 pounds, complete with a technology transfer—could this possibly be a losing venture?

The reason for this perception was simply that the people of this era failed to realize where the future lay. War always causes people's perspectives on the future to shift in certain ways, but the market does not; the market ultimately makes its choices as it evolves.

"What a pity..."

While Jason and the company's patent lawyer busied themselves with negotiations with GEC, Richard carefully reviewed another technical analysis report—a report on British automotive engine technology. The document listed various technological advantages, naturally pointed out its weaknesses, and finally concluded that... it was technically inferior to those of the United States and Germany.

"Let's wait a bit longer. If we are going to import, we import the best. Once Germany is defeated, I'll take a trip there and pick up that Beetle along the way..."