Thailand-based firm to invest $293 mln in central Vietnam silicon rod factory

Thailand-based Runergy PV Technology Co., Ltd. will invest $293 million in a factory producing monocrystalline silicon rods and semiconductor platters at the Dong Nam Economic Zone in Nghe An province.

Runergy PV Technology Ltd is a subsidiary of China-headquartered Jiangsu Runergy New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.

A senior official of the Dong Nam EZ told The Investor Saturday that the plant, located in the Hoang Mai I Industrial Park, would have a design capacity of 14,635 tons of silicon rods and 995 million 182-milimeter semiconductor platters a year.

The 28.6-hectare project will feature 15.6 hectares of manufacturing facilities, 1.3 hectares of supporting facilities and 11.6 hectares of roads and trees. Its duration is until February 26, 2071.

Factory construction is scheduled to take place between June and October for trial production to begin in November 2023. Full operations are set to begin in June 2025.

The investment certificate for the project was handed over during Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to China last month.

Registered FDI in Vietnam declined 4.3% year-on-year to nearly $13.43 billion in the first six months of the year, while disbursed capital reached $10.02 billion, up 0.47%, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Of this, Nghe An received $720.94 million, eighth highest among all 63 localities in the country.

So far, Nghe An has attracted 124 FDI projects with a total registered capital of $3.29 billion.

Major FDI project investors in the central province include Taiwan-based chipmaker Foxconn with a new investment of $100 million reported in May. Foxconn is set to commence construction of the 48-hectare project in June 2023-June 2024. Between July 2024 and October 2024, the giant will conduct trial runs, then enter official operation in November 2024, according to its investment certificate.

Yongjin Metal Technology (Vietnam) Company Limited, a subsidiary of China-based Yongjin Metal, kicked off the construction of a $125 million factory in Nghe An last month. The 12.6-hectare plant, located in WHA Industrial Zone 1, was granted an investment license in November 2022. The project, named Tan Viet Metal Technology, is expected to become operational in the second quarter of 2024, employing 300 people.

In November 2022, Nghe An approved in principle the Luxshare-ICT (Nghe An) 2 project that will make electronics parts at the VSIP Nghe An industrial park. The project will have an investment of $150 million for the first phase and a designed capacity of 74 million products a year.