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Lion Group says $9.8 billion steel venture under review
Malaysia’s Lion Group said its planned US$9.8 billion steel plant venture in Vietnam is being reviewed in light of the global financial crisis.
“We are considering various aspects of the project and its implementation in view of the global financial crisis that has occurred since the project was initially proposed,” the company said by e-mail to Bloomberg News. This will require discussions with the Vietnamese authorities, financial institutions and its suppliers, it said.
Talks on the proposed joint-venture plant in Ninh Thuan Province with Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group, or Vinashin, will take “some time” to complete, the company said.
“We heard about the review,” and the group is “probably” considering the value of investing in a country that already has many steel projects, Nguyen Tien Nghi, vice chairman of the Vietnam Steel Association, said in a telephone interview from Hanoi Monday.
Vietnam may face a “surplus of steel” because of the growing number of projects, Nghi said. Steel producers in the country expect construction steel capacity to reach about 7 million metric tons this year, outpacing demand of 3.8 million tons, he said.
“We sent requests to the prime minister to ask the government to review licensing steel projects in order to balance supply and demand,” Nghi said.
thanhnien, bloomberg
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