South Korea lines up IZ in Bac Giang province

The province’s Viet Yen district was finally chosen as the location for the IZ after more than a year of checking out possible sites including Vinh Phuc and Hai Duong, said a source from the Northern Investment Promotion Centre, under the Foreign Investment Agency of Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI).
The Korean investor plans to pour about $100 million into the project to build furnished internal infrastructure facilities. The source also said that a memorandum of understanding to set up this IZ will be signed between the MPI and Korea’s Ministry for Industry, Trade and Energy during the APEC week.
Bac Giang Planning and Investment Department Do Quoc Tuan vice director said the Viet Han IP had been allocated 160 hectares of the best land in the province, adjacent to the future expressway linking Lang Son and Hanoi, which is due to start construction in 2008.
Tuan said that the IP will become a major competitor to neighbouring Quang Chau IZ, if it offers better facilities.
Quang Chau, developed by domestic Sai Gon-Bac Giang IZ Infrastructure Facilities Construction Company, is currently one of the biggest IZs in the country, covering 426ha.
To get the project underway Tuan said the Bac Giang province is seeking financial sources to pay land compensation, estimated at about VND100 billion ($6.25 million).
According to the local authority, Bac Giang has three IZs and nine industrial clusters, including Dinh Tram (101ha), Quang Chau (426ha) and Song Khe-Noi Hoang (150ha) which are already open for business.
Viet Yen district has already attracted a number of domestic and foreign invested enterprises involved in producing construction materials, garments, fertiliser, pulp and beverages.
The district already boasts two famous traditional villages to produce bamboo and rattan and foodstuff products.
South Korea is currently the fourth biggest foreign investor in Vietnam with 1,246 registered projects worth $6.15 billion.
Korean Industrial Complex Corporation (KICOX), an enterprise under the Korean Ministry of Industry, Trade and Energy has also been tipped to sign another memorandum of understanding to develop more IZs in Vietnam.




No. 787/November 13-19, 2006