Work starts on Korean-invested biodegradable materials project in Hai Phong city

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Saturday for a VND2.4 trillion ($94.3 million) high-tech biodegradable materials factory project in Vietnam's northern port city of Hai Phong.

The project is the result of an investment promotion trip to South Korea by Le Tien Chau, a Party Central Committee member and chief of the Hai Phong Party Committee, in June 2023, concretizing an MoU signed between the city and South Korea's SK Group.

This is also the first direct investment project of SK Group in Vietnam, creating an important premise for further expanding the Korean group’s investment activities as well as attracting supporting businesses in the near future.

The Ecovance high-tech biodegradable materials factory project was given an investment license by the Hai Phong Economic Zone Authority on September 22, 2023.

Covering 32,089 square meters in the DEEP C Hai Phong I Industrial Park in the Dinh Vu-Cat Hai Economic Zone, the project has an initial investment capital of about VND2.4 trillion ($94.3 million), which is expected to increase to $500 million by 2030.

It will be implemented from May 2024 to June 2025. Once the factory comes into official operation in September 2025, it will produce 70,000 tons of PBAT (polybutylene adipate terephthalate) biodegradable plastic, 59,500 tons of PBS (polybutylene succinate biodegradable plastic), and 6,300 tons of THF (tetrahydrofuran) solvent per year.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Le Anh Quan, permanent Vice Chairman of the municipal People's Committee, said that this event not only marks an important step in attracting FDI in the fields of high technology and environmentally friendly materials, but also affirms Hai Phong’s position and attractive investment environment in the country and the region.

“The city always prioritizes attracting investment projects that use modern and environmentally friendly technology, contributing to creating solid foundations for a green Hai Phong,” he noted.

The official called on foreign investors in general and SK Group and its supporting businesses in particular to increase investments in industrial parks and economic zones in Hai Phong.

Park Won Cheol, CEO of SKC Group, said this is a modern PBAT factory earmarked for the global biodegradable materials market. It is also a rare case when advanced technology developed by SKC will be applied in its factory in a foreign country, not South Korea, he noted.

SK Group is South Korea's second largest conglomerate, engaging in various fields such as telecommunications, semiconductors, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals. In Vietnam, SK Group has indirectly invested about $3.5 billion through cooperation with local firms like private conglomerate Vingroup, leading retailer Masan, and pharmaceutical firm Imexpharm.