Nui Phao Mining Company has pledged to complete a land clearance project by the end of the year for Nui Phao Vica, one of the country's largest mining projects in Thai Nguyen Province.

Officials from the province had announced earlier that the US$510 million project would restart later this month, after a two-year delay. The project is key to the province's economy, which has the potential to provide an effective contribution to the area's socio-economic development.

The company, a joint venture between Masan Group and Thai Nguyen Import-Export and Investment Co, is planning to build a mine by the end of the fourth quarter of 2012 and construct a vonfram factory by the fourth quarter of 2014.

According to Masan Group director Michael Nguyen, the mining operation aims to harvest tungsten from one of the largest deposits in the world.

There are also substantial deposits of copper, flourspar and bismuth in the province.

Licensed in 2004, Nui Phao Vica has an initial investment capital of $150 million.

Approximately 80km north of Ha Noi, the project was managed by three partners: Tiberon Minerals Co, Thai Nguyen Minerals Co and Thai Nguyen Import-Export and Investment Co. Investors hoped to extract 3.5 million tonnes of copper, flourspar and bismuth ore each year, of which 80 per cent of the minerals would then be exported.

The project has already failed to stay on schedule and the local authorities have already threatened to revoke the project's licence if it continues to progress at a glacial pace.

In May, Masan Group announced that it would purchase the controlling interest in Nui Phao which fund manager Dragon Capital had bought from Tiberon Minerals Pte Ltd. —VNS

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