TẠP CHÍ ĐIỆN TỬ
Thaco seeking permission to build $4.1bln circular economy complex in Lam Dong
Complex to focus on mining and processing bauxite, with construction in three phases over the course of a decade.
The Thaco Group has proposed building a circular economy complex for mining and processing bauxite with investment of VND103 trillion ($4.1 billion) in the central highlands’ Lam Dong province.
As part of its long-term strategy, Thaco envisions expanding into sectors where it has a competitive edge, such as agriculture, renewable energy, and post-environmental restoration.
Central to this initiative is the Lam Dong 2 Alumina Plant, spanning Bao Lam, Da Huoai, and Da Teh districts as well as Bao Loc city in Lam Dong. Thaco had initially projected total investment of $2.1 billion for the bauxite mining and processing complex, including a bauxite ore beneficiation plant and an alumina processing facility.
Following extensive research, it has now doubled its original investment estimate, integrating additional projects such as red mud material production, a logistics center with an inland dry port, auxiliary factories, resettlement and residential zones, and high-tech agriculture and ecotourism developments.
The project now encompasses a full circular economy model, spanning bauxite mining, alumina and aluminum processing, and environmental rejuvenation, and extending to agricultural and ancillary industries, including ecotourism.
Its investment capital includes equity financing of 30 per cent ($1.3 billion), with the remaining 70 per cent coming through loans. The project’s developmental roadmap is segmented into three phases, which will be carried out over a period of ten years, and is expected to produce four tons of aluminum each year once put into operation in 2034.
Construction of the alumina plant’s first phase is scheduled to commence in August 2025, aiming for operational status by 2028.
The project expects an average annual return of 16.2 per cent and a payback period of nearly eleven years.
During the project’s 50-year duration, it will mine bauxite ore to manufacture aluminum in the first 20 years, then switch to external bauxite supply in the remaining 30 years, according to Thaco.
Thaco also is asking to have a meeting with the Lam Dong Provincial People’s Committee this month to present its research results and implementation plan for the project. It aims to complete the report on the project’s feasibility quickly and submit it to regulators within the first quarter of 2024.
