At the province’s 2018 Conference for Business Promotion held recently, the province said it is home to 6,318 enterprises with a comined investment of VND79.5 trillion and 130 FDI projects worth $7.3 billion.

Many businesses have enjoyed great success in the province, including Masan Group and Samsung Electronics, which have made significant contributions to Thai Nguyen’s socio-economic development.

Masan Group, one of Viet Nam’s leading private enterprises, has invested almost a billion dollars since 2010 in a tungsten mining and processing project in Nui Phao in Dai Tu District in the northern province of Thai Nguyen through its subsidiary, Masan Resources.

Masan Resources’ revenues are expected to reach VND8 trillion this year, backed by a 36 per cent global tungsten market share ex-China, Nguyen Dang Quang, the chairman and CEO of Masan Group, said at the event.

It contributed about VND3.2 trillion in taxes in 2015-17, Quang said.

The Nui Phao project employs hundreds of international experts in mining, processing and refining besides over 2,000 Vietnamese, and has set a new standard in the mining industry.

Masan bought the Nui Phao mine in June 2010 from a foreign owner and in the beginning only had a few dozen employees. Doubts shrouded the project as many people questioned Masan’s execution capability and the project’s success.

But the company beat all the odds, proving to the world it could turn it around and ramping up Nui Phao’s operational capability.

In Thai Nguyen Province, South Korea’s Samsung Electronics put into operation a hi-tech complex in the Yen Binh industrial complex in 2014.

It was worth $6.23 billion, and employs 70,000 people.

According to General Director of Samsung Vietnam Shim Won Hwan, Samsung Electronics Vietnam Thai Nguyen has set itself an export target of $22 billion this year.

The company had become one of largest businesses not only in Thai Nguyen but also the whole country, he said.

Samsung and Masan chose Thai Nguyen as the base for one of their largest investments since the province has advantages including being close to Ha Noi and Noi Bai Airport and having direct transport links with the port city of Hai Phong, facilitating easy travel by their employees and transportation of goods.

Besides, Thai Nguyen is among the 15 most competitive provinces in Viet Nam and the top 2 in the north.

It is also one of the two provinces with a large number of profitable enterprises among the 14 in the northern mountains. This is a showcase of a quality environment for investment, according to the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).

Nguyen Dang Quang, the chairman and CEO of Masan Group,made a speech at Thai Nguyen’s2018 Conference for Business Promotion held on 3 July. — Photo by Masan courtesy.

The business environment in Thai Nguyen is generally considered to be competitive and friendly, with companies enjoying many incentives, which improve the province’s image as an attractive investment location for both Vietnamese and international corporations.

Samsung Electronics Vietnam Thai Nguyen has attributed its success to the province’s highly skilled workforce, good infrastructure and favourable business environment among others.

Their success has made huge contributions to the Vietnamese economy, especially Thai Nguyen’s.

In a way, large investments in Thai Nguyen by world-class companies has changed it for the better and brought positive social and economic impacts to local people’s lives.

As a result of Samsung and Masan’s investments, Thai Nguyen has joined the ranks of Viet Nam’s provinces with the largest investments and exports.

A highlight of Thai Nguyen’s economy is its fast-changing composition. Industrial production grew the most in the past four years.

Last year industry and construction accounted for a 55.4 per cent share of the province’s economy, services for 32 per cent and agriculture, forestry and fishery for 12.6 per cent.

Income per capita has risen significantly in recent years, from around $700 in 2008 to $2,300 last year.

At Thai Nguyen’s 2018 Conference for Business Promotion, Quang said: “We are proud to have Nui Phao as a beacon of the ‘Vietnam Can Do’ spirit as we are becoming a fully integrated downstream industrial chemical and metals business of global scale, with a 36 per cent market share ex-China.

“We are committed to fighting for Viet Nam’s faith and pride and preserving and amplifying ‘Vietnam Can Do’ as we take on global competition.”

He urged the Government to continue with its administrative reform, easing administrative formalities for companies in the province, to boost economic gains and contribute to Thai Nguyen’s economic and social growth.

The CEO of Samsung Vietnam also urged all levels of Government to expedite regulatory and administrative processes, quickly address enterprises’ concerns since these factors bear the most risks to the operation of any enterprise.