On February 25, speaking with Lao Dong reporter, Mr. Duong Van Kiem - Director of Lao Cai Carat Joint Stock Company branch said that the unit had just paid nearly 3.5 billion VND, including taxes and fees, to the State Budget. This is the beginning of the determination to return to production in 2025.
"We are putting all our heart and intelligence into this comeback. If everything goes well, it is expected that in the second quarter, the ore blocks with a carbon content of over 95% will be released into the furnace. Then it will reach a purity of 99.9% to meet the increasingly strict demand of the market," said Mr. Kiem.
According to Mr. Kiem, in parallel with strengthening financial resources, the company has also sent many documents to central and local departments to explain the reasons for the delay in the past time.
The document shows that at the time of project construction, through market surveys, orders only required products to achieve 92% carbon content. Therefore, the company has chosen and built a factory with 92% carbon processing technology.
However, after a few years of construction, when entering production, the market demanded higher quality. The company is forced to adjust technology and add equipment to produce products with a carbon content of >95%.
By December 2019, the company had fully invested and completed the project in accordance with the investment policy. The company has completed the mine infrastructure, completed the factory and adjusted production to produce products with a content of >95% C.
However, by 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, causing orders to be stopped. The company has issued a document reporting to the General Department of Geology and Minerals, Lao Cai Provincial People's Committee and relevant departments about the temporary suspension of production activities from March 2020 to present.
"The company's operational orientation for the next phase is deep processing, improving carbon purity. Thereby, products are more valuable, have better prices, increase state revenue and create more jobs for local workers.
We really hope that ministries, branches and Lao Cai Provincial People's Committee will pay attention and have priority policies to encourage and support the company," Mr. Kiem added.
The Nam Thi Graphite Exploitation and Processing Project is invested by Carat Joint Stock Company, located in Nam Thi commune, Lao Cai city, with an area of 107.7 hectares.
The project has an exploitation capacity of about 200,000 tons of ore/year, producing a maximum of 10,000 tons of products/year. The investment capital is nearly 300 billion VND from shareholders, organizations and non-bank loans.
