“Uncovering the Truth: Secretary of Quang Nam Exposes Lax Management of Mineral Mines”

The management of mineral exploitation for construction materials such as fill dirt, sand, and gravel in Quang Nam province has been inadequate. Enterprises licensed for extraction have manipulated the market, continuously pushing prices upward. Lax management has even led to situations where officials “protect” and “back” mineral extraction activities, resulting in overexploitation beyond permitted reserves, causing state budget losses.

According to regulations, the listed price of sand at the mine is VND 150,000/m3, but in reality, in Quang Nam province, for a long time, construction enterprises and people have had to pay cash at exorbitant prices without invoices. Currently, the price of construction sand in Quang Nam province and Da Nang city has surged to VND 500,000/m3 to VND 600,000/m3.

In the mountainous areas of Nam Tra My, Bac Tra My, and Tien Phuoc districts in Quang Nam province, the price of sand is also VND 400,000/m3 when purchased at the mine. In mid-2023, when public opinion spoke out, the People’s Committee of Quang Nam province requested relevant agencies to implement measures to control construction material prices, timely adjust and announce monthly construction material prices, and strictly handle acts of speculation and price gouging. However, after a while, everything went back to the way it was.

A frustrated construction contractor described the situation: “The price of sand when it reaches the construction site also depends on the location of the project and the transportation route. Buying at the mine costs about VND 400,000/m3, but by the time it reaches my construction site, it costs VND 600,000/m3 to VND 700,000/m3. Despite these outrageous prices, the mine owners sometimes issue invoices and sometimes refuse to do so. For example, if we buy VND 100 million worth of sand, they will only provide an invoice for VND 10 million or VND 20 million because they are afraid of exceeding the permitted reserves.”

For a long time, the supply of fill dirt in Quang Nam province has been lacking, causing many key projects in the area to stall. It is ironic that despite being a region with many hills and abundant land and rocks, Quang Nam province is facing a shortage of fill dirt. The market price of fill dirt far exceeds the estimated price in the project, leading to a situation where “the more you work, the more you lose.”

A representative of a construction enterprise in Que Son district, Quang Nam province, said that while the investor continuously demands faster progress, the contractor is almost at a standstill due to the lack of fill dirt: “According to the estimate, the unit price of fill dirt is only VND 56,000/m3 to the construction site, but in reality, we have to buy it at VND 170,000/m3. We calculated that when the project is completed, we will have to compensate, and just for the difference in the price of fill dirt, we will lose up to VND 3 billion. This puts enterprises in a very difficult position, but since we have bid for the project, we have to accept it. However, there is currently no legal source of fill dirt in the district for construction.”

Sand and fill dirt prices show no signs of decreasing, and the scarcity of supply is affecting the progress of disbursement of public investment capital. The Vo Chi Cong road completion project, with a total investment of over VND 2,000 billion, started at the beginning of this year but has not yet found a source of fill dirt. There are currently 7 bridges in the province, with a total investment of over VND 1,000 billion, that are almost complete but lack access roads due to the lack of fill dirt. The flood diversion project connecting the center of Duy Xuyen district, Quang Nam province, with National Highway 1A and Road 14H, is 4km long and has a total investment of VND 280 billion. This project was launched in April 2020 and was expected to be completed by April 2023, but it has only reached 60% completion and has been temporarily halted due to a lack of fill dirt.

Local authorities have sent documents to the province requesting permission to zone in on a number of mine sites without organizing auctions to serve key projects. Recently, the People’s Committee of Quang Nam province directed the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to evaluate the implementation of extraction procedures and the ability to supply construction materials, especially fill dirt, for transportation projects; propose solutions to address the shortage of construction materials.

Mr. Bui Ngoc Anh, Director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Quang Nam province, provided information: “The Department of Natural Resources and Environment has just approved 22 additional mine sites for auction. Currently, according to the assigned authority, the organization of the auction of these mine sites is under the purview of the district-level People’s Committees. We are urging this matter, and for localities that have already received the province’s auction decision, we request that they promptly organize auctions for these mine sites.”

The planning of Quang Nam province for the period of 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, clearly states that in the coming years, the province will organize bidding and licensing for 640 land mines. However, currently, there are only 70 land mines in operation or about to be licensed for exploitation in the province.

For a long time, mineral extraction activities for sand, gravel, and land in Quang Nam province have had many shortcomings. Some enterprises have exceeded their capacity, delayed land reclamation, and failed to restore the environment after extraction. Many enterprises show signs of violating the law by not issuing invoices or issuing invoices with values lower than the actual payment. Some enterprises appear to be colluding to hoard goods and manipulate prices.

Mr. Luong Nguyen Minh Triet, Secretary of the Quang Nam Provincial Party Committee, said that the province would implement stringent measures to rectify mineral extraction activities: “There are many issues in the management of extraction and pricing of land and sand, resulting in tax losses. There are even cases of ‘protection’ for mineral extraction activities. This is a very pressing issue. I have received numerous complaints regarding the management and exploitation of minerals. People monitor mineral extraction activities and report cases where some mines exceed their permitted reserves. People specifically pointed out the identities of officials who ‘protect’ a particular mineral mine. The authorities are almost unable to manage this issue.”