In late 2011 Chinese national Zhong Heng Shan, chairman and director of the Nguyen Long Son Co Ltd, a subsidiary of China’s Nguyen Hinh Group, inked a contract with Pham Phu Thanh to receive 100ha of agricultural land in Ham Chinh Commune of Ham Thuan Bac District, and another 10,000-square-meter plot in Ham Duc Commune.
The two, however, became involved in a dispute over the land transfer. But while the dispute has yet to be resolved, Zhong has submitted a document to the provincial people’s committee to seek permission to import equipment and machinery to begin production on the land.
Zhong said in the document that he had transferred VND13.5 billion to Thanh to complete the contract, but the Vietnamese man has still refused to hand over the real-estate papers and the construction and investment licenses.
Thus, Nguyen Long Son Co called for intervention from local authorities and proposed to be allowed to grow blue dragon fruit on the 100-hectare plot in Ham Chinh and build plants and offices on the plot in Ham Duc.
However, Thanh told a different story.
Illegal investment
Thanh said he has so far received only VND10.5 billion from Zhong, while he has already handed over all of the relevant papers to him.
He added that Nguyen Long Son Co was initially formed by him on December 30, 2011, with total registered capital of VND90 billion. Thanh held a 20 percent stake of the company, worth VND18 billion, and a man called Vu Duy Tam accounted for the remaining VND72 billion.
Two months later, on February 28, 2012, the company registered to add two more shareholders from China -- Huang Bi Qiu and Zhong Heng Shan. Qiu then took a 30 percent stake, and Zhong 40 percent.
As Thanh and Tam both reduced their shares to a modest 5 percent stake each, the company has fully come under the management of Zhong.
However, it is the presence of the two Chinese men that prevents the company from getting the investment license, as the provincial people’s committee said the company has now become a foreign-invested one.
Under current law, if the investors want to set up plants, they have to do it inside the province-based industrial parks, the committee said.