PM Dung takes tour of Tan Rai bauxite complex

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung inspected the Bauxite-Aluminum Tan Rai Lam Dong Complex and the Nhan Co Aluminum Factory during a trip yesterday to Dak Nong Province.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung inspected the Bauxite-Aluminum Tan Rai Lam Dong Complex and the Nhan Co Aluminum Factory during a trip yesterday to Dak Nong Province.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung (M) inspects the Bauxite-Aluminum Tan Rai Lam Dong Complex and the Nhan Co Aluminum Factory during a trip yesterday to Dak Nong Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Duc Tam
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung (M) inspects the Bauxite-Aluminum Tan Rai Lam Dong Complex and the Nhan Co Aluminum Factory during a trip yesterday to Dak Nong Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Duc Tam

Viet Nam National Coal-Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) owns the Tan Rai project, which has the capacity to produce 650,000 tonnes of aluminum per year. The complex has three components: mineral extraction, sorting plants and an aluminum factory.

After operating for a year, the Tan Rai project in 2014 had churned out 485,000 tonnes of aluminum. In 2015, the project is expected to produce 540,000 tonnes of aluminum.

According to Vinacomin, the group earned US$160 million in 2014 exporting 490,000 tonnes of aluminum to 11 countries and territories, including Switzerland, Singapore, South Korea, China and Hong Kong.

Living conditions in Lam Dong Province have improved considerably since the project started. It has provided 12,000 stable jobs. Meanwhile, Lam Dong aluminum company has provided 1,450 jobs. On average, a worker's monthly salary is VND6.6 million (US$309).

In his working session with Vinacomin leaders and the Tan Rai project management unit, Dung said he was proud of the project's achievements over the past year.

"This has confirmed the Party and Government's decision to extract bauxite to produce aluminum," he said. "The government will provide favourable conditions for enterprises willing to invest in producing iron from red mud."

He asked Vinacomin to equitise the project as soon as the plant's production became stable. This would allow the private sector or strategic investors to invest in the enterprise during its expansion period.

Earlier on Monday, Dung visited the Nhan Co Aluminum Factory. He asked the factory's managers to draw on lessons learned from the Tan Rai project to speed up the factory's construction process so it could start operating by late this year.

"Positive signals have indicated a bright future for the extraction of bauxite and aluminum production in Viet Nam," he said.

Dung also said he was confident that aluminum products from the Tan Rai project and the Nhan Co factory would make the Tay Nguyen a major producer of aluminum. He said he would do his best to help the project overcome difficulties with Government policies and funding so its technical infrastructure could operate on schedule.

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