"Thermal power?" Mr. Wardrick on the other end of the phone sounded a bit surprised, "I didn't know you were interested in such public infrastructure projects. Where do you plan to build it?"

Mr. Wardrick's consortium runs many projects, and this generation's consortiums operate differently from the first-generation ones in the Federation.

The consortium behind Mr. Pato, for instance, holds tight control over areas like real estate, mineral resources, metallurgy, and transportation. They have advantages in these fields, as these commodities were not valuable in their era.

With a small amount of money, you could buy vast tracts of mountain land, and who knows how many minerals lie beneath the surface.

By the time of the middle generation, during which Mr. Wardrick and his peers rose, society and technological development had reached a new level, and new products began entering the market.

Some new things became the key to mastering wealth for them, such as industry and chemistry, including new energy sources.

These areas were not yet monopolized by the first-generation consortiums and can be seen as the path for the rise of the middle-generation consortiums.

As for the current new-generation consortiums, they primarily build their foundations on real estate and manufacturing, continually challenging the early and middle-generation consortiums, striving to gain more influence.

Mr. Wardrick is involved in energy projects, which are not easy to execute. Even those with money and power struggle to succeed in the Federation because of the power grid.

The Federation's power grids are private, and so are the power plants. After the initial wild growth and frenzied acquisitions, the power network has been almost fully integrated, and the industry stabilized.

Anyone looking to enter this industry first faces the challenge of grid construction, which can't be resolved for just a few million; such an amount might not even set up a grid for a small city, let alone a national grid.

Therefore, Mr. Wardrick was curious if Lynch built a power plant and started generating electricity, how would he sell it?

The grid wouldn't accept his electricity, even if he had a good relationship with Mr. Wardrick. Unless he bought the right to use the grid and handed over the power terminal pricing rights to the grid, his electricity wouldn't have a market.

By the way, this isn't a monopoly. Since the implementation of the Antitrust Law, the Federal Power Grid has been split into dozens of regional grid companies. Although the shareholders haven't changed much, the Antitrust Law no longer applies to this sector.

"In Churis... yes, the current capital of Amelia. They need a medium-to-large thermal power project here, and you were the first to come to mind when I heard the news."

After hearing this, Mr. Wardrick didn't agree immediately but said in a gentle tone laced with a smile, "I'm not very interested in the business you're talking about. The Gafura people will cause us trouble - this field is more complicated than you think."

"If you're just going to build the power plant, it might be simpler. I'll give you some advice: don't try to operate it yourself. That's the Gafura's home ground, and you have no advantage."

"I have some advanced generator sets here. If you need them, I can offer you a discount. If you need designers, I can introduce some to you."

"But manage it? No!"

He made it very clear that he wouldn't do it, as Gafura and the Federation could not remain peaceful forever.

In the future, there might be ideological opposition, as there is room for only one Emperor and one ruler of the world.

Once this opposing environment forms, long-term industries on Gafura's territory will become extremely troublesome. It's akin to how the Federation dealt with multinational companies before the economic recession.

They could bring a multibillion-asset multinational to its knees over small problems, so dealing with a thermal power project would be even easier—they even have excuses ready, like pollution.

All the chimneys set up by Federals in Nagariel emit various pollutants, yet inspections deem them environmentally friendly because the inspections are conducted by Federal institutions. They claim they're green, and they are.

On Gafura's territory, the inspections are determined by the Gafura people. Even if it meets all Federal standards, as long as they propose a "Gafura standard," it leaves people helpless.

Besides, crucial infrastructure like power plants and grids aren't typically controlled by foreigners. From the outset, he didn't have such an idea.

After hearing Mr. Wardrick's explanation, Lynch did not lose spirit. He hadn't considered success when he asked. If Mr. Wardrick suddenly had a stroke and agreed, it would be a pleasant surprise for him; otherwise, not disappointing at all.

But the call was not yet over, "How much do you know about the current thermal power generator sets in Gafura?"

There was silence for a few seconds on the other end, followed by Mr. Wardrick's voice, "Wait a few minutes; I'll start a conference call. I'm not very familiar with this stuff."

The telecommunications department of the Federation still retains many manual mechanisms. Some lines need manual verification, and secondly, they serve conference calls.

The current switchboards can't yet fully automate conference call setups; it can only be done manually, and the method is simple - unplugging and plugging in.

About two minutes later, after a brief noise, someone joined the call.

"...our most excellent engineer at present, he can give you an answer on this question..."

The subsequent time was filled with the exchange between Lynch and this engineer. He kept scribbling on paper, and after hanging up the phone, pondered for a long time until dawn, when the study's light finally went out.

Information about the power plant quickly began to spread. It was not a secret; the Governor's Mansion even hinted openly and indirectly to the Gafura people that they must secure this vital project, offering some "compensation" at the same time.

For instance, policy preferences, tax reductions, and additional financial subsidies. Holding such advantages, if they couldn't win this open bidding, the Gafura merchants here would be truly disappointing.

Compared to the active merchants in the chamber, Lynch seemed suppressed, with almost no rumors about him and the power plant circulating.

Some considered it normal; being at a disadvantage with a biased referee, even if Lynch was incredibly skilled, praised by the Gafura Emperor, he couldn't achieve anything here.

As the Governor's Mansion watched the groundwork being laid, they entered the process. Meanwhile, a news article in the Bail Federal domestic press piqued international interest.

"Thermal Power Technology Leads World by Twenty Years!"

The Governor spent a long time with his head down, studying a newspaper issued the day before yesterday, wearing reading glasses as he seriously read the report.

The report stated that an industrial research institute in the Federation applied for a rather unique patent, which could reduce unnecessary loss during thermal power generation and boost efficiency. Using the same fuel for reference, the new technology could increase power output by five to fifteen percent compared to the world's major existing power technologies.

A quite... astonishing figure, as the society and technological development progressed, humankind increasingly depended on electric power.

Twenty years ago, a small power station generating only 30,000 kilowatt-hours was enough to meet the electricity demands of a city with a population of 200,000.

Today, that demand has increased tenfold and more, yet they still face power shortages.

People have replaced candles with electric lights and need electricity.

Various convenient home appliances entered their lives, also demanding electricity.

Factories have become large electricity consumers, especially light industry factories. Electric-driven production machinery has become the future development trend.

There is an electricity shortage everywhere, whether in Gafura or the Federation; many power projects start each year.

Now, Federals introduced new technology in the same circumstances to enhance efficiency, and the value of this technology is self-evident.

Once the news broke, Gafura immediately initiated diplomatic engagement, hoping to obtain new power generation technology via exchange but was directly declined by the Federation.

The reason for the refusal is that this cutting-edge technology is not on the exchange or transfer list, and if it doesn't involve patented technology sales, they can communicate with the research unit directly.

This technology... is highly coveted, especially for the limited land of Gafura. With limited land area and scarce resources, the energy gap remains unfilled. If they could acquire these technologies, it's like a dream come true.

But at this moment, there was no smile on the Governor's face; instead, he frowned.

After a while, he put down the newspaper and tapped it twice with his fingers, the force transferring the sound of a deep "thud" to the table.

"This technology's timing is too coincidental, can't help but connect it to Lynch," Governor Sedel looked at his son beside him.

The latter also nodded, "The situation is a bit complicated now and not very favorable to us."

Whether it's the Secretariat or the royal ministers, suddenly their stance shifted slightly, hoping Lynch could secure Churis's power plant project while demanding he use the new technology generator sets for the project.

Once they acquire these generator sets, they can easily find a reason to dismantle one secretly, gaining all patented technology without spending extra.

But this put the Governor in a challenging position!

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