Hong Kong Nears Deal With Walt Disney To Expand Disneyland Park

Hong Kong is nearing a deal with Walt Disney Co. (DIS: News ) to expand the city's Disneyland park in an agreement that will allow the government to keep a controlling stake in the venture, media sources reported Saturday.

The Hong Kong government and Disney have been in long-drawn-out discussions over financing an expansion to the first phase of Hong Kong Disneyland, which are 54%-owned by the government and 46%-owned by Disney.

As part of the proposed agreement, Disney would finance the expansion project, while the government would convert earlier loans to the joint venture into equity in order to keep a controlling stake.

Financial Secretary John Tsang noted that the discussions on Hong Kong Disneyland's expansion have made substantial progress, and said both sides are committed to bringing the discussions to a successful conclusion in the near future.