Vietnam has called for investments in a chain of modern rice storehouses to be built in the Mekong Delta over the next two years, in a bid to improve rice quality for exports.
Investors will be given preferential tax and land policy rates.
The warehouse chain – able to hold four million tons – is estimated to cost VND7.6 trillion (US$427 million) and is slated for completion by 2010, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
With the new facility, rice harvested on fields will be taken to storehouses where it will be processed on a closed line from husking, polishing, drying, and storage.
At present, Vietnam produces 38 million tons of rice annually, of which 4-5 million tons are for export.
But its current warehouses are only able to hold two millions and do not meet international standards on humidity control and quality conservation.
The losses after harvest average 11 – 12 percent of total output, or around 4.5 million tons of rice a year, according to the ministry.
Investors will be given a bank rate of 6.5 percent a year – instead of the current rate of over 12 percent. They will also enjoy zero percent interest rates on machinery purchases.
The government will also give free land rentals for the first five years and chip in 30 percent of infrastructure building costs.
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