Unlocking the Quarry Conundrum: The Unexpected Billion-Dong Investment Pitfall for Two Quarry Owners in Quang Nam.

Previously, on August 6, Mr. Le Van Quang, Chairman of the Dai Loc District People’s Committee, signed a report on the progress of resolving issues related to the two quarries.

According to the report, in 2021, Quang Hiep Thanh Trading and Services Joint Stock Company was granted a license by the Quang Nam provincial authorities to exploit a quarry for common construction materials in Dong Lam village, with a reserve of 570,780 cubic meters. The designed capacity was 35,000 cubic meters of stone blocks per year, and the operation period was 16 years.

After completing the necessary paperwork and legal procedures, Quang Hiep Thanh proceeded with the basic construction investment for the quarry (without implementing the exploitation plan) when the 500kV Quang Trach – Doc Soi power line project was implemented, leading to complications that halted the quarry’s operations.

According to Quang Hiep Thanh, the suspension of the project caused the investor a loss of more than VND 17.6 billion. However, the competent authorities of Dai Loc District determined the compensation cost for the enterprise to be just over VND 2.31 billion after an audit.

Similarly, in 2016, the People’s Committee of Quang Nam province licensed the Dai Loc 27/7 Cooperative to exploit the 27/7 quarry in Hoa Thach village, with a total reserve of 963,537 cubic meters. The designed capacity was 60,000 cubic meters of stone blocks per year, and the operation period was 15 years.

After completing the legal procedures and basic construction investment for the quarry, the owner of the 27/7 quarry proceeded with the exploitation plan. However, after only one round of blasting, the 500kV Quang Trach – Doc Soi power line project was implemented, leading to complications that halted quarry operations.

The investor claimed that the suspension of the project caused a loss of more than VND 41.5 billion. However, the People’s Committee of Dai Loc District determined the compensation cost to be just over VND 7.8 billion after an audit.

According to the Dai Loc District authorities, in accordance with the provincial People’s Committee’s Directive No. 123/TB-UBND dated April 18, 2022, a compensation plan should only be established for costs related to the establishment of dossiers, evaluation, quarry exploitation, environmental impact assessment, use of industrial explosives, land compensation, and compensation for crops on the land, based on valid invoices and documents.

The basic construction costs for the quarry and the costs for supporting the relocation of machinery and equipment for mineral exploitation outside the quarry area are not subject to compensation.

Through several working sessions, the quarry owners disagreed with the proposed compensation values after the audit, arguing that the actual investment values in the projects were higher, including expected profits that the enterprises would have earned if their operations had not been halted.

The two enterprises petitioned the provincial People’s Committee and relevant authorities to consider their actual investment values to minimize losses.

In the report, the People’s Committee of Dai Loc District also proposed that the provincial People’s Committee consider supporting the two enterprises to stabilize their production by assigning them mineral exploitation sites in the district, in accordance with regulations.