Vinashin Eyes Future Growth

It has only been a decade since the Vietnam National Shipbuilding Corporation (Vinashin) started operations yet it has been able to accumulate sizeable capital and gain the government’s confidence in its capacity to become a force in Vietnam’s shipbuilding industry and worldwide. From an initial investment capital of more than $10min 1996, the capital increased to $9.4b with a total turnover of $2.07m in 2006. The total value of contracts signed with domestic and foreign shipowners was $5b by June 2006. Vietnam Investment Review reports that Vinashin has enough work to do from now to 2010 with a turnover from exporting ships being estimated at $2b per year. Currently a plan is being considered so that in the future, a new form of the group will be composed of a parent company (Vinashin Group) to be formed on the basis of reorganizing the management and operating body and member units of the current Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Corporation with full legal status and inherit legal rights and obligations from the shipbuilding corporation. The group will operate on a multi-sectoral and multi-owner basis in which state ownership will play the controlling role. The relationship between the Vinashin Group and its subsidiaries will be implemented within the law and according to the clauses in the charter of the economic group. What is new is that the government has allowed a multi-sectoral and multi-owner organization at a higher level and more comprehensively than other individual groups. Another basic point is that, with this form of group, there will be no mechanisms of administrative command. Instead financial instruments and other instruments including the market, and science and technology will be used. Officials hope that with this form of economic group, Vinashin can easily integrate with the world economy. For the immediate future, the Vinashin Group will attempt to successfully build cargo ships of 80,000dwt, oil tankers of 100,000-300,000dwt and other ships of various types as part of the plan submitted to the government. (Source: Vietnam Investment Review)