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Xepon rubber project gets green light
The Guangda-Lao Company this year plans to grow 800 hectares of rubber in Xepon district, Savannakhet province, after the government approved a 1,000 hectare land concession in 2010.
Government and company representatives met on Tuesday to sign an agreement to establish the plantation on suitable land and to build a rubber processing facility in the province.
Guangda-Lao Company General Manager Zhong Wen Zhuo and Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Thongmy Phomvixay signed the contract at a ceremony in Vientiane on Tuesday.
The company's Assistant Manager Prasith Nouboualaphanh, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Office Deputy Head Khamphan Meuansithida, and officials from Guangda-Lao and the government attended the event.
To date, about 24 billion kip (about US$3 million) of the project's estimated 40 billion kip (US$5 million) cost has been spent in Laos, Mr Prasith said.
The company has begun to grow some rubber trees this wet season and plans to open the processing plant in the next six to seven years.
Initially, provincial authorities approved only 100 hectares of land for the company's use - 20 hectares for a rubber sapling nursery, 80 hectares for growing the trees, and 2,000 square metres for an office.
“Eventually, we plan to grow about 1,000 hectares of rubber, which will provide income for about 500 farming families in the district and promote local economic development,” Mr Wen Zhuo said.
“The company has already invested about 900 million kip to install electricity for local residents, provide clean water, build a school and a police station, and repair roads. Importantly, we are committed to continuing to provide assistance and improving living conditions in the community.”
“Beyond investing in the country, we try to instill in our Chinese employees a respect for Lao culture and promote the development of close relationships with local workers that reflects the deep friendship that exists between our two nations,” Mr Wen Zhuo said.
He believes that under the guidance of high-ranking officials, and with cooperation between the two nations, the project will have wide ranging benefits for socio-economic development.
According to a report from the Forestry Department, domestic and international investors have already planted more than 300,000 hectares of rubber trees throughout Laos .
However, Luang Namtha and Phongsaly provinces are no longer allowing rubber plantations to be established because of a lack of available land.
vientiane times
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