For the last 20 years, Ha Tinh Minerals and Trading Corporation (Mitraco) has been the bridge connecting investors with Ha Tinh, participating in major industrial, technological projects in the province. It is also the first enterprise of Ha Tinh to import minerals to process, as well as the first one of the province to have many successful investments in foreign countries. In order to learn more about the enterprise’s activities, Vietnam Business Forum interviewed Mr Duong Tat Thang, General Director of Mitraco. Phan Quang – Phuong Thao report.
The brand based on dedication
After 20 years accompanying Ha Tinh’s economy, what has made Mitraco a prestigious brand?
First of all, it is responsibility, dedication to tasks and the community. Under any condition, the enterprise has been making all efforts to fulfil our commitments to customers, partners and the community; many partners have cooperated with us for the last 17-18 years.
Moreover, it is responsibility to the community. As a mining enterprise, Mitraco is always striving to accompany local people. For example, in Trung Tan village, Ky Khang commune, Ky Anh district, the Company built a new resettlement village, therefore the village community was not disrupted, local people are satisfied with the new community and the enterprise won people’s trust. Currently, among enterprise’s employees, many of them are from the localities. We also participate in many social programmes, building up economic models in the mining area. Only when interests of the enterprise and the community are harmonised can sustainable value be created.
The brand is made not only from market domination, but also from the trust of community and enterprise’s responsibility to the community.
The corporation has 30 subsidiaries and joint ventures, and many of them do not operate in the advantageous field which is exploiting and processing minerals. Is its investment too unfocused?
The major task of Mitraco is exploiting and processing minerals. Thanks to this task, many officers and employees of Mitraco have been trained and matured in their field to be capable of taking on leading roles and creating new businesses.
There are many reasons why we have diversified business fields. Mitraco is a partner that has been trusted and chosen by many investors and provincial leaders, however, diversification is the very need of development of the corporation. When conducting any project, we are always dedicated to the enterprise’s development, as well as the responsibility to the community and provincial investment environment.
It is worth adding that several expanded fields have brought us high economic results and become our corporation’s backbone, for example the breeding sector alone has brought 35 percent of total revenues of the corporation.
Increasing surplus values
Would you consider this year a very difficult one for multi-business enterprises such as Mitraco?
It is really a difficult year, and as a multi-business enterprise, we have been more affected by the crisis. Mitraco is one of major enterprises supplying additives for the largest cement sector in the country, therefore when public investment is reduced, our cement additive business is also affected.
Particularly in Thach Khe iron project, although the initial expectation was very high, till now there have not been people with controlling shares. Continuing involvement in the business may leave us no way out, therefore, we will withdraw capital from TIC, transferring shares to controlling investors. Mitraco will concentrate its efforts on major projects.
Mitraco has elaborated a development strategy from now to 2015, and vision to 2020. Crucial resources for key projects of 2012 such as ferro-alloy plant, 02 breeding centres, and housing for low income people have been prepared. The management has also improved to be more effective, revenues and profits are higher over the previous year, earning increased confidence from staff and employees.
In difficult conditions, we have maintained our growth rate (15-20 percent a year), ensured jobs and incomes for employees, as well as fulfilled social responsibilities of the enterprise.
What is the direction of Mitraco for the near future?
Mitraco is aiming to be a large brand of the central region; therefore it has to invest deeply, creating surplus values. We concentrate on three sectors: Exploiting and fully processing minerals, this year Mitraco will inaugurate ferro-alloy plant (producing ferro managanese, ferro cilic), title processing plant. In addition, the corporation is studying several material production projects such as plaster adobe, expanding connections in mineral exploration. The second major sector is investing into Vietnam-Laos port development, port facilities, containers, logistics. The last one is strong investment into the breeding sector, creating a closed chain from feeding to processing in order to fully exploit the added value chain with the help of modern technologies.
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