Central Vietnam province to scrap dormant $72 mln resort project

Binh Dinh authorities are carrying out procedures to suspend the $72 million Phuong Mai Bay resort project located in the central province’s Nhon Hoi Economic Zone.

Dang Vinh Son, head of the provincial Economic Zone Management Board, told The Investor that they were implementing procedures to suspend the project and withdraw its investment registration certificate.

The 30.3-hectare project, with a registered capital of VND1.78 trillion ($71.56 million), was scheduled to complete construction in 2024. But so far, it remains a vast area of white sand, with only VND178 billion, or about 10% of the registered capital, disbursed.

The resort, with Phuong Mai Bay JSC as investor, had received in-principle approval from local authorities in 2018.

Under a decision issued in 2021 that amended the in-principle approval decision, the project was rescheduled to become operational in 2024 with work on all facilities completed.

The Binh Dinh Economic Zone Management Board had urged the investor many times to facilitate the project, but saw little progress.

The Investor found that a small number of items like fence walls, gates and some internal roads had been built, but these had already degraded. There were no security guards at the project site, which remained a large area of white sand.

In 2023, the project investor had said it planned to develop infrastructure facilities and the Villa Area 1 segment with a total cost of about VND300 billion ($12.1 million). However, its 2023 report showed disbursement of just VND29.5 billion for the stated work.

In May 2023, the provincial Department of Planning and Investment’s inspection agency decided to fine the company VND85 million ($3,400), which was paid.

The project document features a hotel and resort villas covering 24% of the total area; green trees and water surface covering another 24%; traffic area, parking lots and technical infrastructure taking up a little more than 18%; and 16.49% used for services and entertainment.

The document aimed to build a five-star resort with "unique" marine eco-tourism and conference services.

In the first seven months of the year, the Binh Dinh Economic Zone Management Board inspected 31 real estate projects in the economic zone and industrial parks under its jurisdiction.

Apart from fining the Phuong Mai Bay Resort project and the Dviews Tourist Area project, the board issued decisions to terminate the Thi Nai Lagoon amusement park project and withdraw land allocated to the Dviews tourist area project. It also announced implementation of procedures to withdraw land allocated to the Nhon Hoi Industrial Park project (Area B).

The board said it had carried out regular site inspections and held meetings to urge investors to implement several proejcts including the Pegasus ecotourism complex project, the project to convert to the Quoc Thang tourism complex land to residential land, and a healthcare resort project.

In 2024 through August 20, Binh Dinh licensed 34 new projects worth VND4.19 trillion ($168.2 million), approved additional investments of VND1.83 trillion ($73.4 million) for 54 existing projects, and rescinded nine projects. All the new projects were domestic investments. No foreign-invested project was licensed in the period.