Project stagnation
One of a series of recommendations that the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (TKV) hopes that Quang Ninh province will coordinate to resolve soon, to contribute to increasing coal mining capacity this year is to put into operation the project to expand the open-pit exploitation of Uong Thuong + Dong Vong area, Uong Bi city.
According to TKV, this project was supposed to be exploited from 2024, with a mine capacity of about 650,000 tons/year.
However, up to now, the project is still at a standstill, because it has not yet completed the licensing documents because the old mine was previously assigned to PT Company. Vietmindo Energitma (100% foreign capital) also at this location has not yet completed the procedures to close the mine.
According to regulations, one of the procedures for granting a license to a new mine located within the old mine boundary is to close the old mine after the exploitation period has expired.
Also according to TKV, PT Company. Vietmindo Energitma (Vietmindo Company) has not yet completed the procedures to terminate the business cooperation contract with Uong Bi Coal Company, a member of TKV for the previous project, although the contract term has ended a long time ago.
Therefore, to completely resolve the issue, TKV once again requested Quang Ninh province to direct and request Vietmindo Company to fulfill its responsibilities related to the termination of the business cooperation contract.
Prolonged waste
As Lao Dong Newspaper has reported, disputes over coal mining contracts between TKV, represented by Uong Bi Coal Company and Vietmindo Company, have been going on for many years but have not been resolved.
This has caused the coal mine, considered the best quality in Quang Ninh, to be left unused for many years.
According to TKV, on April 19, 1991, Uong Bi Coal Company, a member of TKV, was signed a business cooperation contract with Vietmindo Company. Accordingly, Vietmindo Company invested in all machinery and technology for exploitation in the 30-year Dong Vong - Uong Thuong coal mine, Vang Danh ward, Uong Bi city.
The profit was divided at a ratio of 90% to Vietmindo Company and the remaining 10% belonged to Uong Bi Coal Company. The open-pit coal mine has an area of over 1,000 hectares, and is the place with the best coal road in Quang Ninh.
For many reasons, it was not until 1997 that Vietmindo Company started mining coal here.
According to the license, Vietmindo Company will exploit until 2021, but is limited to the output of 6.25 million tons of clean coal. Accordingly, even if the output is 6.25 million tons before 2021, the relevant parties will consider suspending or extending the license.
According to TKV data, from 1997 to the end of 2018, Vietmindo Company has exploited a total of over 10 million tons of clean coal, equivalent to 13.5 million tons of raw coal, of which over 8.6 million tons were exported.
However, according to regulations, the application of the output limit of 6.25 million tons has only been calculated since 2009 when the first Mineral Law was issued.
And so, from 2009 to the end of 2018, Vietmindo Company exploited over 6.1 million tons of clean coal.
However, regardless of the plan, by the time the license expires in 2021, according to TKV, the quantity of coal declared by Vietmindo Company has reached at least 6.25 million tons.
Vietmindo Company stopped exploitation activities a few years ago, however, handing over the site was extremely difficult due to many procedures between the two sides.
Up to now, Vietmindo Company has only handed over a very small part of the mine area to Uong Bi City, while according to regulations, only when the entire site is handed over will the local government, together with relevant departments, branches and units, carry out the next procedures to hand over to TKV.
Previously, in April 2019, responding to Lao Dong Newspaper, a representative of Vietmindo Company said that they had sent an official dispatch requesting an extension of 20 more years at the coal mine.
According to the license, the company was exploited in the Uong Thuong and Dong Vong areas, but by 2019, the company had only exploited in Uong Thuong. At Uong Thuong, the reserve is about 1.5 million tons; while the reserve at Dong Vong is about 12 million tons.
After that, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Quang Ninh province sent an official dispatch to Vietmindo Company informing that the land lease contract for this company's area was granted a license by the Vietnam General Department of Geology and Minerals for coal mining in Uong Thuong, Vang Danh ward, Uong Bi city.
In case Vietmindo Company wants to continue leasing land, it must be based on many factors, including whether relevant ministries and branches can agree to extend the exploitation license or not.
In an official dispatch sent to the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam on December 22, 2021, TKV requested not to extend the license and close the mine immediately after the license expires.
