Ba Ria-Vung Tau beckons Japanese
Ba Ria-Vung Tau beckons Japanese
The southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, considered as Vietnam’s oil and gas exploitation hub, is rolling out the red carpet for Japanese investors.
The Vietnamese government has asked the Japanese government to build parks for supporting industries in the southern coastal province as part of the two countries’ strategic co-operation, said Ho Van Nien, Deputy Chairman of the provincial people’s committee.
Japan currently is the largest foreign investor in Vietnam and investments of Japanese firms in the Southeast Asian country is forecasted to increase, he added.
Ba Ria-Vung Tau is already home to many successful Japanese businesses which had made a major contribution to the province. In addition, the province houses various heavy industry facilities, but supporting industries have not yet been sufficiently developed.
“That’s why we’re seeking to woo Japanese resources for our supporting industries here,” he said.
Phu My 3 Industrial Park and Da Bac industrial cluster, which is the first stage of Da Bac Industrial Park, have been allocated to Japanese small- and medium-d enterprises.
“We’ll make all the services Japanese firms need to live and do business here,” Nien said.
The province has set up a taskforce devoted to assisting Japanese investors. The task is to deal with issues and problems facing Japanese investors when doing business in the province, with the province’s leadership nicknaming it as a “rapid reaction force.”
Ba Ria-Vung Tau has asked the Vietnamese government to allow supporting industry companies in the local specialist parks to enjoy the same tax incentives as enterprises in economic zones already receive.
Facilities
Work on the 999-hectare Phu My 3 Industrial Park in Tan Thanh district started this June. Meanwhile, the construction of Da Bac industrial cluster in Chau Duc district began in May with plans for it to become a specialist park covering 1,058 hectares.
Both zones will provide one-stop investor services for establishing companies, issuing investment certificates, translation services, customs clearance procedures, logistics and warehousing, recruitment assistance and human resource training, accountancy services and tax procedure assistance.
The Phu My 3 Industrial Park developer, Thanh Binh Phu My Company - will set aside at least 300ha for Japanese tenants. Company chairman Pham Quoc Dung said the park would look to companies having an interest in light and heavy industries, supporting industries, petrochemistry, chemicals, basic materials, engineering, moulding, high tech development, ports and logistics.
Designed by Japan’s Nikken Sekkei Civil Engineering Co., the $346-million Phu My 3 will include serviced apartments, hotel rooms, residences for staff as well as shops, schools, clinic and parks. It will also provide factories. Water and power supplies would be guaranteed thanks to ample supply of water, natural gas, LPG and condensate.
Ba Ria-Vung Tau borders Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai province. Phu My 3 is not far from Dong Nai’s Bien Hoa City, and 65 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport. It is just four km to Cai Mep-Thi Vai deep-water seaport complex, which provide the logistics hub for Vietnam’s southern economic region.
Meanwhile, the development of $14.3-million Da Bac industrial cluster is under a partnership with Vung Tau city’s Japanese sister city of Kawasaki.
Designed by Japanese company Chodai, Da Bac will include land and factories for lease, business assistance services such as banking, finance, post office, residences for staff, convenience shops, supermarket, clinic and nurseries.
Da Bac is 25km away from Cai Mep-Thi Vai, 100km from Tan Son Nhat International Airport, 15km to the provincial administrative hub, and 40km to Vung Tau city. Work on the road linking Da Bac with Cai Mep-Thi Vai seaport complex is expected to complete soon.
One-stop services
A one-stop investor service unit is already in place for supporting industry investors.
Headed by Nien, the unit includes officials responsible for investor services. One-stop services for investors are located at the province’s Department of Planning and Investment or Industrial Park Management Authority.
Local administrative bodies have also been told to ensure they process all procedures as quickly as possible. All administrative officials in charge of investment procedures for supporting industries have to observe their deadlines, said Nien.
Investors need to submit dossiers at the one-stop shops at industrial parks or industrial clusters, with officials returning the documents as quickly as possible.
The process is set for application during the third quarter of this year, coinciding with the time that Phu My 3 Industrial Park and Da Bac industrial cluster are due to make land plots available to Japanese investors.
Local workforce
Vocational schools in the province are training learners in vocational skills and Japanese culture and language.
For example, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Vocational College is providing training in engineering, electronics, metal work and has plans for metal plating training courses. It has sent lecturers to Japan for further training.
The college is set to train 1,500 workers for supporting industries between 2012 and 2015. The first course, in 2012, saw 300 students study metal working. The second course will start this September with 400 students studying engineering and electronics. For next year, it plans to have 400 students for plating. In 2015, the school expects to train 400 students to meet investors’ demands.
The college has signed training agreements with Japanese firms and the province’s Department of Industry and Trade via Forval. The Japanese group supervises this training and is responsible for finding jobs for the students.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has made a $20-30 million commitment to provide funding for the school to buy equipment. Legal steps for this funding are on the way.
Representatives from the Japanese companies, having witnessed Ba Ria-Vung Tau’s latest developments, said they wanted to speed up their investment plans in the province.
Ogawa Minoru, head of the mission from Kawasaki City and Tsubame City companies, said Japanese firms were happy to see the province making the training efforts.
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