An unnamed Taiwanese company is to build a UFO research facility in China's Guizhou Province.

The plan, reported by the Chinese-language China Daily, follows - albeit slowly - claims made more than ten years ago by locals who said they were visited by tree-felling aliens.

Or a tornado, which is what the scientists who investigated the claims later pronounced the cause of the damage to be. Thunder and lightning - no doubt, very, very frightening - also played a part, they said.

Still, the Taiwan-based business has nonetheless contributed CNY160m ($19.8m) to the city to establish a centre to research and document the night's events.

Scientists remain skeptical, the paper claims, citing Wang Fangchen, a biologist who visited the site right after the event, who said the scheme was "ridiculous".

Even local UFOlogists seem unsure that the events of 30 November 2004 had an extraterrestrial origin. "If aliens really came, they would more likely appear before our eyes politely than hide themselves," said Zhou Xiaoqiang, the Beijing UFO Research Association's secretary general.

"People often mistake planes, clouds and insects, as well as strange shadows on photographs, as being UFOs," he added. ®

Related stories

• MoD to publish secret UFO files (3 May 2007)
• UK airline pilots spot giant UFO (27 April 2007)
• UFOs don't exist, says secret UK report (8 May 2006)
• British Rail flying saucer unearthed (13 March 2006)
• Flying China saucer (1 March 2006)
• Area 51 'hacker' charges dropped (28 January 2005)
• Romanian villagers flee disco-dancing aliens (5 October 2004)
• Area 51 hackers dig up trouble (25 May 2004)
• Close Encounter yours for $1.3m (17 February 2004)
• UK Govt to post UFO sightings on Net (29 November 2002)
• UFOs ‘spotted’ on 11 September footage (7 December 2001)
• Satellite pics of US alien base hit the Web (19 April 2000)
• UFOs claim Web CEO's scalp (12 January 1999)
• Aliens 1: Intel 0 (1 December 1998)