VN news

[AnHai Doan <anhai@cs.washington.edu>]

Headlines:

Toyota cars to roll off assembly line in June
State offices need approval from Finance Ministry to buy cars
Sulzer looks forward to Vietnamese market
Be careful with counterfeit U.S. dollars!
High value vegetable and fruit export on the up
A new model "industrial" park to appear in Vietnam
Stock market still out of sight
Long An Garment Company to double production capacity
US$136 million of loans to buy stockpiled paddy
Vietnam gets ready for first bid to WTO membership
Cajuput forests on the decline
Hughes wants to help Vietnam in telecom satellite


Toyota cars to roll off assembly line in June

Toyota Vietnam will put into operation in June an assembly line using
CKD2 (complete-knock-down) type of components. Its Me Linh Automobile
Plant in Vinh Phu Province will be assembling the 15-seat Hiace, using a
lot of locally produced parts. Nguyen Thanh Giang, deputy general
director of Toyota Vietnam said the parts include electric wiring
produced by Sumi-Hanel Joint Venture, and leather seats supplied by
Takilichi Vietnam.

The value of the local-made parts accounts for more than 10% of the
imported components. Toyota's plant, 25 kilometers northwest of Hanoi,
has a total output of 2,000 units per year, which can be increased to
10,000 units in 2000.

Toyota received a license in September 1995 to set up the US$49 million
Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV) Co. Ltd., a joint venture with Vietnam Engine
and Agricultural Machinery Corp. (VEAM), taking 20% of the stake, and
Singapore-based KUO (Asia) Pte. Ltd. with a 10% share. 



State offices need approval from Finance Ministry to buy cars

Vietnamese State offices should meet requirements set down by the
Ministry of Finance before they can buy cars for office use.

Finance Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung signed earlier this month a document
(1483 TC/QLCS) sent to all ministries, Government branches, social and
political institutions and provinces asking them to fill in several
reports if they want to buy cars.

These include a report on all types of vehicles already owned, a report
on current use of the vehicles, taking into account reasonable,
economical and effective use. The Finance Ministry will only consider
the need of offices that have not bought cars, or have old cars that
need to be replaced. The budget for car purchase must be taken from 1997
approved budget.

Offices that need to buy cars and already meet the requirements should
send to the Finance Ministry the following documents: a request from the
ministries, branches or provinces, which should include the quantity and
prices of cars purchased and the source of budget; a copy of the office
establishment decree, a request from the buying offices.

The Ministry of Finance will consider and approve each case only after
the buyer meets the requirements.


Sulzer looks forward to Vietnamese market

By Bich Thuy
HANOI

Products of Sulzer Group (Switzerland), which are mainly in mechanical
engineering, have entered the Vietnamese market in three fields: hi-tech
weaving machines, equipment for industrial electricity sector and
equipment for the oil and gas sector. Currently, the Electricity of
Vietnam (EVN), PetroVietnam and Vietnam Fertilizers and Chemicals Corp.
(Vinatex) are big customers of Sulzer.

Last year, the group obtained a sales turnover of about US$5 billion.
Asia, Vietnam included, is considered an emerging market while the
European one has been saturated. 

Sulzer operates successfully in Vietnam and has taken part in several
projects. Two operation areas of Sulzer are to take part in project
bidding and to do business. Upgrading the control system for Hoa Binh
Hydropower Plant was the first big project which Sulzer won when it
first came to Vietnam; followed by the contract worth two million Swiss
francs signed with 8-3 Textile Factory to supply P Lean weaving machines
with credits from the Swiss government. These two large projects have
created a good reputation for Sulzer to participate in new projects.

To meet the increasing demand for power for daily use and production, a
great deal of capital is badly needed to invest in the power sector, and
this is an important market for Sulzer. An official of Sulzer Vietnam
Rep Office remarked that, in addition to several old factories in need
of upgrading, it is necessary to set up new hydropower plants such as
Ham Thuan-Da My, Son Mai and Son La.

Sulzer has participated in the oil and gas market as a subcontractor
supplying equipment. So far, Sulzer has sold over 100 pumping machines.
As regards the textile market, in spite of fierce competition, Sulzer
weaving machines have satisfied customers' requirements.

In an attempt to reduce the production costs, Sulzer is considering the
establishment of production lines to produce some machinery parts in
Vietnam. The first task is "Seeking projects for developing customers
and seeking customers for developing projects." In the immediate future,
Sulzer will open one more rep office in Southern Vietnam, focusing on
the developing oil and gas market in this region. The rep office in
Northern Vietnam will deal in power and textiles.



Be careful with counterfeit U.S. dollars!

According to Cong Nghiep Viet Nam newspaper issued last week,
counterfeit US$100 bills have appeared in Vietnam. It is hard to
differentiate these counterfeit bills from genuine ones because the
quality of paper, ink, design and security characteristics of the former
are carefully considered. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Tung, an international
currency expert of Vietcombank suggested the main differences as
follows:

- The surface of the counterfeit dollar resembles that of the genuine
one; however, it is rather puffy and more brittle, and is not as white
as the real one. The words on the security stripe are not as sharp as
those on the genuine one.

- The ink surface of the design is cracked; it is not as smooth and
sharp as the real one.

- The words "The United States of America" edging the portrait of
President Franklin is interrupted and cracked on the surface.

- The surface of designs in genuine bills is even, and inlaid deeper
into the bills, while it is not in counterfeit ones.

- If carefully observed, the designs are short of lines, interrupted and
cracked on the surface.

- In particular, if we take a close look at the portrait of President
Franklin, we can see that in genuine bills, no matter what direction the
bills are tilted to, the eyes of the president seem to turn towards us,
whereas counterfeit ones, do not give the same illusion



Enterprise line


* Hanoi-Waterman Purified Water Plant member of the International
Purified Water Association

Mr. Daniel W. Nease, director of Asian Waterman USA Co., on behalf of
Waterman USA, recently handed product quality and trademark certificates
to Hanoi-Waterman Purified Water Plant, together with a decision
recognizing it an official member of the International Purified Water
Association. This is the first and only purified water plant in the
country to receive quality and trademark certificates from the U.S. At
the moment, the plant produces 300,000 liters of purified water a day
using inverted absorption methods and sterilizing it with ozone and
ultraviolet. 


* Bai Bang Paper Co. invests VND50 billion in improving product quality

Since the beginning of 1996, Bai Bang Paper Co. under Vietnam Paper
Corp. has spent VND50 billion synchronizing the production line to
produce international standard products competitive with foreign goods.
With two automotive paper-rolling systems, the company has increased the
capacity of the rolling line to 600 meters a minute. In 1996, the
company produced 57,027 tons of paper, an increase of 2,000 tons
compared with the designed output, and sold 53,057 tons of paper of
different kinds. The company has plans to increase the output to more
than 60,000 tons. Over past months, Bai Bang Paper Co. has produced
upwards of 22,600 tons of different kinds of paper. 



High value vegetable and fruit export on the up

According to the assessment of the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), endowed with ecological conditions (soil, climate, rainfall and
sunlight) and labor force, Vietnam possesses huge potential in fresh
vegetable and fruit production and processing for export. However, this
potential has yet to be realized.


By Tuyet Minh
HANOI


Before 1990, every year Vietnam exported to the market of the former
Soviet Union and Eastern Europe 32,000 tons of fresh fruits (mainly
bananas, pineapples and oranges), 19,000 tons of canned fruits and
20,000 tons of frozen pineapples, attaining an export turnover of 25
million-30 million of convertible roubles. In 1986-1990 period, the
total vegetable export turnover of Vietnam reached US$200 million. In
this period, vegetables and fruits were exported mainly through
agreements signed between the two governments, and produce was easily
consumed because the demand for quality and tastes were not high.

After 1990, due to political upheavals, the traditional market of
Vietnamese vegetables and fruits collapsed while a new market has not
yet been established. Local enterprises specializing in vegetable and
fruit production and export seemed to be passive and perplexed in the
change of market, leading to a serious decrease in vegetable and fruit
export. Vegetable and fruit export turnover decreased from US$51.5
million in 1990 to US$15 million in 1991, averaging US$14 million/year
in 1990-1993 period. 

>From 1994 up to present, exporters have applied advanced technology and
economic measures in order to gradually raise the competitiveness of
Vietnamese vegetables and fruits on the international market. Marketing,
market surveys and expansion have been paid close attention by local
enterprises. Some countries and territories in Northeast Asia (Taiwan,
Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan), Western Europe and the Middle East
have accepted Vietnamese produce though consumption levels are still
modest. In 1994-1996 period, vegetable and fruit export turnover rose
considerably: US$23 million in 1994, US$59 million in 1995 and US$50
million in 1996.

The structure of exported vegetables and fruits was also changed to meet
the new market demands. Pineapples and bananas still played an important
role but tended to be replaced by high quality and value produce such as
lychees, longans, mangoes, mangosteens, dragon eggs, cucumbers, young
corn and asparagus. In 1993, Vietnam exported 4,557 tons of canned
pineapples and 25,000 tons of bananas; in the next three years (1994,
1995 and 1996), the corresponding figures were 2,827, 2,269 and 2,317
tons of pineapples and 4,952, 4,521 and 3,593 tons of bananas.
Meanwhile, exported lychees rose from 187 tons in 1994 to 462 tons in
1996 (according to data from the Ministry of Trade).

According to the development plan for the vegetable and fruit export
sector, it is projected that the cultivated areas will amount to 1.6
million hectares, attaining an output of 20 million tons including one
million tons processed for export. The total investment capital is
estimated to reach US$400 million. But some reasons hindering the
success of Vietnamese vegetables and fruits on the international market
are obsolete and backward preservation and processing technology and
high production costs, not to mention low production organization skills
and bad packaging. For instance, the price of Vietnamese canned
pineapples is 20%-30% higher than that of the same kind from Thailand
and the Philippines. 

Attracting local and foreign investors in vegetable and fruit production
and processing for export, and mapping out a long-term strategy for
major produce structures based on regions, crops and consumption markets
are targets aimed for by the Vietnamese vegetable and fruit export
sector.



A new model "industrial" park to appear in Vietnam

Hoc Mon District People's Committee has just signed a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) with Mr. Moon Soo Jung, who represents a group of
South Korean investors, to prepare a cooperation project to develop a
large-scale recreational resort complex in An Ha in the district.

By Tan Duc 
HCMC

According to the MOU, Hoc Mon District will assign a company in the
locality  to enter into the cooperation project under the form of a
business cooperation contract with South Korean investors to develop and
operate a recreational complex covering 250 hectares adjacent to An Ha
Bridge. The contract will have a term of 30 years.

Mr. Pham Nguyen Hoang, manager of the International Cooperation Division
of Dong Duong Construction Consultancy Company, who provide consultancy
services to the project, said Korean investors will cooperate with Hoc
Mon District to develop the complete infrastructure on this 250-ha area,
and prepare planning for sports and tourism sections within An Ha
Complex to call for investment from other companies.

Construction works expected to be developed on this complex should
include a golf-driving range, hotels, a separate resort of
strong-sensation games, a fenced natural park of 40 hectares where birds
and animals will be raised for hunting, a recreational resort for
children, a sports center, tennis courts and volleyball yards, and an
ethnic village serving dishes typical of many countries from all over
the world.

Potential partners in the project are having the feasibility study and
detailed planning for the entire complex prepared by the Southern
Architecture and Construction Company (ACSA). These studies are expected
to be completed by the end of this year.

Leaders of Hoc Mon District People's Committee express their hope that
the project will start construction in the first half of 1998. The first
construction work will be building a 50-ha lake for water sports, and
soil from the lake will be used for leveling the complex area. Other
construction works that will follow include the installation of water
and electricity supply systems. In addition, the partners involved also
plan to operate mono rail and cable car systems in the complex.

The development model of this complex is similar to that of an
industrial zone, only different in that this is not for industrial
production, but for recreational and tourism purposes only. Companies
wishing to set up their operations within the complex are only allowed
to invest in construction works in strict compliance with the master
plan of the zone.

According to Mr. Moon Soo Jung, many South Korean investors have
committed to developing recreational facilities in the complex.



Stock market still out of sight

By Quoc Vinh
HCMC

Seen as a tool to form goods for the future capital market, equitization
of many State-owned companies are currently on hold, though chairman of
the State Stock Exchange Board, Mr. Le Van Chau, announced recently in
Ho Chi Minh City that initial conditions for the establishment of the
nation's first stock market are in good shape.

Mr. Chau told the press that around 80 small businesses have been
equitized on an experimental basis and hailed these as embryos for the
first commodities for the stock market. Additionally, he said,
"enterprises are experiencing stable and profitable operations and may
join the process to create commodities for the [stock] market."

Observers, however, do not share his optimism. "Equitized firms are too
small and not that successful," they say. Many of the models that the
Government here wants to praise to speed up the process are in fact
trapped in the middle.

The Lao Dong newspaper reported yesterday that one of the pilot
equitized businesses, Hai Phong's Passenger Vehicle Company (HPC), is
still not recognized a joint stock company, even after six years of
efforts. The problem has reportedly resulted from the slowness and
inability of relevant authorities to evaluate these enterprises'
capital, before issuing shares.

The company was selected to be equitized by Hai Phong's People's
Committee in 1991, but not until 1993 the Ministry of Finance (MoF) gave
the proposal a nod. MoF also ordered that the firm's assets had to be
evaluated before September 1993 but the Ministry itself could not form
the so-called Asset Evaluation Council until the last quarter of the
following year. HPC was then, in May 1996, worth VND1.8 billion (about
US$157,000).

Although, with this modest capital, the company was allowed to issue
3,600 shares to offer its own staff, but not one share has yet been
sold. The excuse is: "The State Treasury has not yet decided on the
design of stock certificates".

"If it takes six years for this small company of VND1.8 billion to
evaluate its assets [and yet to be truly equitized], how long will it
take for a bigger company of VND180 billion?" the paper asked.

Vietnam has many times postponed the foundation of the first stock
exchange. Mr. Chau could not specify a deadline. He admitted that the
current financial system is still weak for the emerging market. "The
stock market cannot operate if a strong, stable and uniformed financial
system does not exist," he said.


Long An Garment Company to double production capacity
By Bui Van Muoi


LONG AN

At the last Quang Trung Trade Fair '97 and Can Tho International Trade
Fair, several products of Long An Garment Co. attracted the attention of
fair-goers such as tents, leather bags and sacks.

Formerly, this company was an enterprise located on a 2,000 sq.m area
specializing in producing leather shoes for export. With a staff of 20
unskilled workers, the enterprise had to produce and train, and seek raw
materials and customers at the same time. When the competition in
footwear production for export became harsher, together with the
stagnancy of the East European market, the enterprise was on the verge
of bankruptcy. 

At that time, leaders of the enterprise decided to transform its
production, importing a series of industrial sewing machines. A new
staff of workers were trained with hi-tech operational skills. At first,
it signed subcontracting contracts with some foreign companies. To date,
the enterprise has thrived to be a company with 40 sub-contracts
contracts with customers.

Many local and foreign companies in HCMC have ordered Long An Garment
Co. to produce items upon their request, including even fastidious
clients such as Sony (Japan). At present, the company exports about 10
kinds of products to France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium,
Sweden, Norway, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, South Africa,
Venezuela, Mexico and Scotland.

Long An Garment Co. has devised the format of product diversification
since raw materials for production must still depend on customers. As a
result, sales turnover of the company increases each year; US$357,000 in
1992 and US$800,000 in 1996, earning a profit of 21%/year, contributing
nearly VND300 million to the State budget. In the first four months of
this year, the company attained a sales turnover of about VND6 billion.
Some clients have signed contracts until the year 2000 with the company.

In order to help expanding production, Mr. Ton That Hung, vice chief of
the Investment Division of Long An Province People's Committee, revealed
that the province has invested US$200,000 for Long An Garment Co. to
build a new workshop in Voi La (Ben Luc District), aiming to raise the
company's production capacity from 500,000 products/year currently to
one million products/year. This second workshop in Ben Luc District will
employ over 300 laborers. It is estimated that this year the company
will spend an additional VND1.2 billion on importing a new production
line.



US$136 million of loans to buy stockpiled paddy

Banks for agriculture and rural development in the Mekong Delta will
loan local rice companies VND1,500 billion (US$136 million) to buy one
million tons of farmers' stockpiled paddy. Rice trading firms have begun
to borrow to purchase and reserve paddy (unhusked rice) for exports, Sai
Gon Giai Phong daily quoted the southern rep office of the Vietnam Bank
for Agriculture and Rural Development as reporting.

>From May 17-24, provincial rice companies in the Mekong Delta took out
VND365 billion worth of loans to buy in 329,000 tons of paddy. An Giang
and Dong Thap provinces became the biggest buyers with over 100,000 tons
each.


* Truong Xuan Dairy produces 20 million liters of milk per annum

Truong Xuan Dairy started operation last week after more than one year
of construction. This is the seventh dairy affiliated to Quang Ngai
Sugar Company to be constructed over the past four years. With an
investment of VND80 billion and state-of-the-art equipment, Truong Xuan
Dairy churns out 20 million liters of milk a year, including yogurt,
soya milk, sterilized milk, together with four million kilos of
ice-cream.  


* SECOM to issue share certificates

The Telecom Equipment and Cable Production Company (SECOM) will issue
share certificates this month in an attempt to increase its equity by a
factor of ten, Lao Dong newspaper reported. As planned, a number of
240,000 share certificates with a face value of VND500,000 will be
issued this time. SECOM is a subsidiary of the Vietnam National Post and
Telecoms Corp. (VNPT) with a present equity of US$1.34 million; about
51% of the potential share certificates will be bought by the State, 32%
sold to VNPT employees, 15% to its staff, and the remainder to the
public. 



Vietnam gets ready for first bid to WTO membership

Vietnam's replies to 1,500 questions raised by WTO (World Trade
Organization) members will be debated in June or July this year, during
the first round of negotiations between the emerging nation and the
largest international trade watchdog, according to officials of the
Trade Ministry. 

By Quoc Vinh
HCMC


The questions were set after Vietnam had officially applied for the
organization's membership last year to testify the Asian nation's
qualification to join the grouping.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Minh, Head of the Ministry's Multilateral Trade Policy
Department, told a local newspaper earlier in the week, that some macro
policies will be committed by the Vietnamese Government in this meeting,
including the most-favored-nation (MFN) status to all WTO members,
market management policies, price stability fund and equality between
all economic sectors. Mr. Minh will be one of the key negotiators at the
landmark talks with WTO.

Other commitments consist of tax frame or "ceiling level of taxes",
tariff reduction scheme for different merchandise, and those
administration policies, such as business licensing, import and export
permission and quotas. "We must assure the transparency of policies and
prompt information of any possible changes," said Mr. Minh.

He also told participants at a seminar in Ho Chi Minh City last week
that Vietnam's delegates would have to face questioning from the large
trading entities about intellectual property rights, investment
incentives, and emergency acts against trade deficits.

The WTO's membership is seen by the Vietnamese Government as a must to
fully integrate into the global commercial community, just like its
entry to ASEAN _ the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

WTO membership is not, however, an easy bite for Vietnamese businesses.
Most local companies, especially State-owned ones, are still wary about
future fierce competition from foreign firms, once they are entitled to
enjoy the same favorable tax scheme. "It's easy to say we want to play
the same game, but, frankly, most of us are not qualified enough to
join," said a director of the Materials and Equipment Supplies Company
under the Ministry of Industry.

"In international practice, they just buy good products from
manufacturers, while we, in Vietnam, prefer to request customers to
accept our quality," a private printer in Ho Chi Minh City spoke in
anonymity. He explained that most State-owned companies tend to limit
themselves in the so-called Vietnamese standards, while refusing to
invest further (in both infrastructure and human resources) to approach
internationally acceptable quality standards.

"The process of admission to ASEAN and preparation to join WTO is the
procedure to build up a market for the economy," Mr. Minh said. "Our
businesses must take the initiative to raise the quality of their
products."

Vietnamese leaders actually see the admission to regional and global
trade organizations as a tool to kick off local production, encouraging
local enterprises to compete fairly in an open market, struggling for
improvement. Local business people must improve their products to
survive.

Made-in-Vietnam products have partly improved since the nation was
admitted to ASEAN in July, 1995. In Ho Chi Minh City, the municipal
authorities have replaced the slogan of "the Vietnamese use Vietnamese
products" with that of "the Vietnamese use high-quality Vietnamese
products". However, except for few names that sell well like Vinamilk,
Biti's and P/S, most other local consumer goods are not competitive
against imported items.

To temporarily solve this problem, Mr. Minh of the Trade Ministry said
that initially, the Government of Vietnam would commit only to remove
tariff barriers for those "strong competitive products" and maintain
protection for "weak commodities". He then added, "in the long run, the
protection can't be maintained forever" and advised that dynamism of
local businesses is more important to "cut short the long road to full
global integration."

The WTO, successor of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT),
now groups 129 countries and territories, of which 28 are observers and
13 others are pending full admission. The entire group accounts for more
than 90% of the global trade volume.



Cajuput forests on the decline

At present, there are about two million hectares of area with alum soil
nationwide; 1.2 million hectares of these are in the Mekong Delta. Those
alum-intruded regions which have been purified and cultivated bring
considerable profits for developing the economy and improving people's
lives in plains. Those seriously alum-intruded regions have over the
years formed a kind of special forest: cajuput forests on peat soil
affected by seasonal floodings.

By Associate Doctor Thai Thanh Luom
HANOI


These forests are unique in their biological diversity including
overland, water and amphibious creatures, and birds. According to many
ancient books, even elephants, tigers, leopards and crocodiles -
precious animals - can be found in cajuput forests. But the unique
aspect is that cajuput forests are able to create a rich ecological
system, an ideal and fresh water environment for the habitat of various
kinds of creatures. 

However, natural cajuput forests are currently facing the risk of being
destroyed since many localities have plans to destroy forests for
cultivation. In the Mekong Delta, cajuput forests can be found only at U
Minh Thuong Natural Preserve (Kien Giang Province) and Vo Doi (Ca Mau
Province), and this existence is in the balance because local
inhabitants are cultivating paddy on peat soil on a trial basis. It is
estimated that paddy cultivated on this kind of soil has a very low
productivity ratio (below three tons/ha/crop). Several vast
alum-intruded areas covering tens of thousands of hectares are now
lifeless owing to the consequence of failed paddy cultivation by people
living near what were previously cajuput forests. If this tendency
continues, natural cajuput forests will be at risk of disappearing.
Nevertheless, even after these failures, some localities still have
plans to use these forests for pilot paddy cultivation, considering them
as reclamation programs. 

Agricultural production has been given, quite rightly, first priority,
but agricultural production must be based on advanced technology, that
is, production efficiency and ecological environment protection must be
given closer attention.

The destruction of cajuput forests in Dong Thap Muoi (Plain of Reeds)
and Long Xuyen Quadrangle for pilot paddy cultivation has given rise to
economic and labor losses, and natural calamities such as floods and
droughts.

>From the above-mentioned important characteristics of cajuput forests in
alum-intruded and flooded areas, a plan to rehabilitate lost and
deserted cajuput forests is badly needed. Following are some tasks to be
done:

Localities must map out zoning schemes for all deserted and seriously
alum-intruded areas, for reforestation and protection.

The upgrading and protection of the existing natural cajuput forests
must be matters of great concern.

Cajuput forests in the current natural preserves must be improved and
developed. International assistance is appreciated to preserve the
biological diversity of these sensitive forests.



Hughes wants to help Vietnam in telecom satellite

Hughes Electronic Corp., a well-known American business in electronics,
has recently introduced its products in communication-transport and
telecom in Vietnam. On his visit to Vietnam, Mr. Ted G. Westerman - vice
chairman of Hughes Electronic Corp. - answered the local press about the
future trading plans of the corporation in Vietnam.

Would you please elaborate on the corporation's operation aspects?

- In 1932 when having just been founded, Hughes was just a mall company
specializing in manufacturing aircraft. Through many periods, leaders of
the corporation carried out great changes in order to gain more profits.
To date, the corporation undertakes designs, production, marketing and
maintenance services for its products concerning such sectors as
telecom, aircraft, spaceships, and electronic components for national
defense and automobiles.


Would you please mention some cooperation fields of Hughes considered to
be successful in Vietnam?

n After being recommended to Vietnam Post and Telecom Corp. (VNPT),
Hughes surveyed the demand for developing economically and quickly the
telephone networks in the large- and medium-sized cities of Vietnam. GMH
2000 stationed cordless telephone network manufactured by Hughes Network
System Co. (HNS) met these requirements. In October 1994, HNS and VNPT
signed a memorandum of understanding to install this network in Vietnam.
Project 1 was carried out in HCMC and has been used by some 6,000
subscribers. As planned, the network of Hanoi worth US$50 million will
be put into use in summer this year. Moreover, sensing the advantages of
the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT), the international telecom Co.
has installed a pilot network of 55 VSAT stations nationwide. One of the
first customers of this network is Petronas. n n This company has
installed one on its oil rig offshore of Vietnam.


What are some future plans of Hughes in Vietnam?

- The Vietnamese post and telecom sector is considering the purchase and
operation of its own telecom satellite, and a  refeasibility study has
just been completed. Hughes has provided technical assistance for
relevant Vietnamese agencies. The corporation expects to supply more
information and equipment concerning satellites, satellite operation and
telecom services via satellites, organizing training courses and
necessary guidance for Vietnam so that the latter can provide telecom
services of high standards.

Thank you, sir.    (Thuong Mai - Commerce - newspaper)
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