Vinalines Injects US$4.2Bln for Business Expansion to 2010
State-run Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) plans to invest US$4.2 billion in the next four years to expand its business operations in the emerging shipping industry in Vietnam.
Vinalines’ chief executive Duong Chi Dung said nearly half the investment will go to ship fleet expansion, while some $1.7 billion will be spent on port development and the remaining $500 million will be used for logistics services.
The huge investment will enable Vinalines to grasp new opportunities in the industry, he said.
“We are now in the process of executing a series of fleet expansion projects, port development and logistics service,” Dung said, adding the corporation will pool sufficient capital for the ambitious goal.
The largest capital channels are bank loans and funds raised from selling stakes, he said but refused to elaborate on the corporation’s scheme to go public.
“Vinalines has clinched agreements to borrow $200 million each from HSH Nordbank, Citibank and HSBC, plus a big loan of $1 billion from another European bank currently in negotiation” Dung added.
Under its development strategy, Vinalines will develop its fleet to include many container vessels, oil tankers, loose cargo vessels of up to 150,000 tons to navigate routes to Europe and North America.
Vinalines is also involved in several joint venture projects with Hutchison of Hong Kong, SSA of the United States and PSA of Singapore to develop major deepwater seaports.
In the coming months, Vinalines will start work on the first two wharves in Van Phong International Transshipment Terminal in central Khanh Hoa Province. (Saigon Times Daily)
Vietnamese
