A number of big foreign-invested projects in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province have been put on de facto hold due to site clearance problems.
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| Guang Lian is waiting for land in Quang Ngai Province |
Saigon Atlantic Hotel project, which has a total capital of USD4.1 billion pledged by Winvest Investment Vietnam under the US’s Winvest LLC Group, remains at a standstill.
An official from the provincial Department of Planning and Investment said, the investor is willing to start the project; however, the problem is slow site clearance.
The project is designed to cover 307ha on the mainland and 610ha built out onto the sea, but to date, the province has only handed over 100ha to the investor. Late March, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Ho Van Nien held a meeting to speed up compensations for the site clearance.
According to Hoang Xuan Vinh, an official from the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Department of Planning and Investment, up to VND600 billion (USD28.7 million) is required for the compensations; meanwhile, the local budget is limited.
The province has already spent VND100 billion (USD4.78 million) for the site clearance. The investor has advanced VND98 billion (USD4.68 million) for the work and planned to start building some major parts if the land transfer pace was ensured.
Wonderful World Theme Park project worth a total investment of USD1.3 billion by Good Choice USA-Vietnam Ltd.Co. is in the same situation. The project is to take up a 133ha site in the city of Vung Tau.
The initial estimate for the cost of compensation and resettlement is VND1.5 trillion (USD71.7 million). The province is seeking advances from investors to accelerate the process.
A USD900-million international exhibition and conference centre project by Skybridge Dragon Sea Company is also waiting for land. Licensed last year, the site clearance for the project has not been carried out.
There are many other examples of delays in foreign investment projects for the same reason. For instance, a USD4.5-billion steel project by Guang Lian Vietnam Ltd. Co. needs 500ha of land, but, so far Quang Ngai Province has handed over only 300ha to the firm.
Le Thanh Quan, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Economic Zone Management Department, said that calling for advances from investors has been successful in other cases. Taiwan’s Formosa Group has advanced USD30 million for its steel project in Ha Tinh Province towards early completion of site clearance.
