South Korea’s Topvina Corporation has recently inked an agreement with Vietnam’s Au Lac Corporation to operate the famous Tuan Chau Resort in the northern Quang Ninh province over a period of some 40 years.
Under the deal signed last week in Halong City, the Korean company will take over operations of the entire resort beginning this month.
Within the next three years, Topvina will spend US$20 million to upgrade the resort, develop a sea sport complex, a seafood restaurant, and other facilities.
The Korean investor also plans to inject US$30 million into building of a five-star hotel on Tuan Chau Island, which had been planned under the initial blueprint but never got off the ground.
According to Lee Cheon Suk, Director General of Topvina Corporation, Tuan Chau is located in an advantageous position and has the potential to become a high-grade tourism complex. However, the current facilities and services are still not special and attractive enough. The Korean investor expects to turn Tuan Chau into a complex of tourism, entertainment, and a famous cultural destination.
The Korean partner is now beginning its work on upgrading facilities at the Tuan Chau complex. The complex will welcome visitors with a new face next summer. It aims to attract international travelers from Japan, South Korea and other Southeast Asian countries.
Though it is a leasing contract, experts say this is in fact a takeover, as the lease term is up to 40 years, similar to many property and tourism development projects in Vietnam.
Foreign investors still face difficulties in carrying out property development projects in Vietnam, and one of the ways to approach the market is to acquire Vietnamese-owned projects, the experts added.
Topvina is a 100 per cent Korean-owned entity established in Vietnam by a group of individual investors.
VietNamNet, SGT
Vietnamese
