Speaking at the meeting to present solutions for handling the HH1 apartment buildings, a representative of the Vietnamese-Russian joint venture Vietsovpetro, the main investor in the project, noted that the firm would return the project’s land to the province and requested a refund of its investment in its construction.
According to the appraisal by Vietsovpetro, the total value of the partly-constructed project is US$43 million, or VND1 trillion, the local media reported.
The province’s vice chairman, Quoc, agreed to the firm’s proposal and tasked the Department of Finance with reappraising the property and informing the firm of the results.
Besides this, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment was assigned to put up for auction the land use rights and land-attached assets.
Quoc also asked Vietsovpetro to submit a written proposal agreeing to return the land to the province and asking for a refund of its investment value.
In addition, the firm was required to complete handover procedures in line with prevailing regulations.
Apart from this, a representative of Vung Tau City proposed the province consider allowing it to use the apartment buildings for resettlement in the city.
However, Quoc rejected the proposal as unfeasible.
The HH1 apartment building project covers 1.5 hectares of land in the center of Vung Tau City.
The project, with a total investment of VND1.6 trillion, features two 33-floor blocks, which can accommodate 2,200 people. The project, which was expected to provide 646 apartments, commenced construction in the first quarter of 2013 and was slated for completion in the fourth quarter of 2014.
The apartment building project was aimed at serving Russian employees at Vietsovpetro. When in place, these employees would move from their deteriorating condo buildings to the new ones in line with the urban development plan of the city.
Work on the project started in 2012, but in late 2015, when the 32nd floor was under construction, the project was halted due to financial difficulties. Vietsovpetro was no longer in need of the apartment building by then, so the project was abandoned.
Vietsovpetro stated that the firm had invested VND700 billion in the construction of the HH1 apartment buildings.
In late 2017, Vietsovpetro wrote to the Ba Ria-Vung Tau government proposing the province allow it to transfer the project to recover its capital.
Many potential investors showed interest in the project. However, Vietsovpetro has not yet announced its price.
