HANOI, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Chief of Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) Tran Tuan Anh on Tuesday explained to the country's lawmakers about economic losses of some 32.2 trillion Vietnamese dong (1.44 billion U.S. dollars) of five major projects.
Anh made the explanation during a question and answer (Q&A) session held in Vietnam's capital Hanoi on Tuesday during the ongoing second gathering of the 14th National Assembly (NA).
NA deputies asked Anh for the causes of failed or delayed projects, the responsibility of people in charge of those projects' implementation as well as measures to deal with these projects. Also, Anh was urged to provide proposals to overcome shortcomings in management of investment in state-run enterprises to avoid similar losses.
Addressing Sinh's inquiry, Anh said there are many reasons that lead to losses of the five key projects such as features of the sector, fields and characteristics of each project. These projects have been implemented longer than ratified investment duration, brought no economic benefits and their products could not compete with imported ones. In some projects, revenue does not cover costs.
"There have been backlogs, especially violations, in administration and management of the projects as well as limited capacities of investors," said the minister.
Concerning measures to deal with such projects, the MoIT head said in order to preserve capital, protect the state property and interest, these projects can be sold or even declare bankruptcy if necessary.
At the same time, "legal violations and willful misconducts in the management and administration of these projects will be strictly dealed, or even faced criminal handling," said Anh.
The five major state-owned projects that are facing losses and risks of bankruptcy include Dinh Vu fiber factory with investment of 7 trillion Vietnamese dong (313,900 U.S. dollars), Bio Ethanol Dung Quat Plant with investment of 2.2 trillion Vietnamese dong (98,650 U.S. dollars), Thai Nguyen steel expansion plan's second phase with investment of 8 trillion Vietnamese dong (358,700 U.S. dollars), Phuong Nam pulp mill with investment of 3 trillion Vietnamese dong (135,000 U.S. dollars) and Ninh Bình Fertiliser Plant with investment of 12 trillion Vietnamese dong (538,000 U.S. dollars).
During the Q&A session which was broadcast live on television and radio, the MoIT chief was also faced questions about multi-level marketing, retail network in the context of integration, the fight against fake, smuggled and low-quality products, policies to develop the automobile industry as well as plans for assessing quality and planning of hydropower and irrigation projects in the time ahead.
