Who Owns the ACIT Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Empire?

Since Mr. Pham Dinh Thang officially took over as Chairman and CEO, ACIT has entered a phase of rapid capital increase. Notably, the acquisition of Trung Nam Solar Power Joint Stock Company stands out as a significant milestone in this period of growth.

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Power Equipment Manufacturing, Construction, and Installation Giant

Asia Industrial Technology Joint Stock Company (ACIT) is a leading manufacturer of electrical cabinets and substations, providing comprehensive equipment solutions for transmission and distribution substations, as well as electrical systems for industrial parks, high-rise buildings, and key national projects.

ACIT currently owns four manufacturing plants: Quat Dong No. 1 Factory (Quat Dong Industrial Cluster, Thuong Tin, Hanoi); Quat Dong No. 2 Factory (Quat Dong Industrial Cluster); Hoa Lac No. 1 Factory (Hoa Lac High-Tech Park, Thach That, Hanoi); and Hoa Lac No. 2 Factory (Hoa Lac High-Tech Park).

Quat Dong No. 1 Factory of ACIT

ACIT provided all the technological equipment for a 450 MW solar power plant and a 500kV substation as part of the Trung Nam Group’s project, which included a 500kV substation and a 220/500 kV power line combined with the Trung Nam Thuan Nam 450 MW solar power plant.

As a powerhouse in the manufacturing, distribution, and construction of electrical projects, ACIT secures dozens of lucrative contracts each year. Specifically, the company won 15 bids in 2016, 17 in 2017, 64 in 2021, and an impressive 70 bids in 2022, with a total value of over 3,000 billion VND.

Most recently, Asia Industrial Technology Joint Stock Company won Bid Package No. 18: Supply and Transport of First-Class Equipment for NLMR at the 500 kV O Mon Substation, under the Management Board of Power Projects in the Southern Region – a branch of the National Power Transmission Corporation, with a value of 59.4 billion VND (compared to an estimated cost of 59.9 billion VND)

The company also secured Bid Package No. 04-2023: RMU Cabinet Installed in Steel Pole, worth over 100 billion VND (with a package value of 102 billion VND) at Ho Chi Minh City Electricity Corporation.

Beyond the electrical industry, ACIT, under the leadership of Chairman Pham Dinh Thang, ventured into the general construction sector by contributing 23% of the capital to establish Hiteccons Joint Stock Company in 2017.

Other shareholders include Covestcons Limited Company – a subsidiary of Coteccons Construction, contributing 31%; Hanoi Refico Investment Joint Stock Company with a 31% stake; and Hoang Thanh Land Infrastructure Development Joint Stock Company with a 15% stake.

Notably, ACIT’s partner, Coteccons, is one of Vietnam’s leading construction contractors. Hanoi Refico Investment Joint Stock Company is also a subsidiary of Refico Group, owned by entrepreneur Tran Quyet Thang, who served as a member of Coteccons’ Board of Directors from 2012 to 2022.

Ambitions in the Renewable Energy Sector

In addition to supplying electrical equipment, ACIT is also the investor in the Bau Zon Solar Power Plant project. This project covers an area of 29 hectares in Phuoc Huu commune, Ninh Phuoc district, Ninh Thuan province, with a capacity of over 25 MW and a total investment of approximately 500 billion VND. The plant officially commenced commercial operations (COD) on August 5, 2020.

In April 2021, ACIT attracted attention by announcing the completion of its acquisition of a 49% stake in Trung Nam Solar Power Joint Stock Company (TN Solar Power) – the investor in the Trung Nam Thuan Bac Solar Power Plant in Ninh Thuan province.

The plant has a capacity of 204MW, a maximum electricity output of 450 million kWh/year, and a total investment of nearly 5,000 billion VND. The project has a 20-year power purchase agreement with Vietnam Electricity (EVN) at a committed price of 9.35 cents/kWh.

ACIT stated that, from January 1, 2021, the company had acquired all rights and obligations related to the aforementioned shares in the project. On April 9, 2021, the company pledged all 49 million shares, equivalent to 49% of TN Solar Power’s charter capital, at MB Bank’s Saigon branch.

Most recently, in early July 2024, Trung Nam Solar Power Joint Stock Company announced the resolution of the bondholders of 12 bond codes, with a total value of nearly 1,900 billion VND in circulation.

Accordingly, Trung Nam Renewable Energy Joint Stock Company (the guarantor for the bond package) will transfer 19.9 million shares of Trung Nam Solar Power to the bondholders. The above shares are secured for the bond lots.

The transferees include Asia Renewable Energy Investment and Development Company Limited (18 million shares) and Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh (1.9 million shares).

In fact, Asia Renewable Energy Investment and Development Company Limited is a subsidiary of Asia Industrial Technology Joint Stock Company (ACIT).

With the subsidiary acquiring an additional 18 million shares (equivalent to 18% of the capital), ACIT has successfully acquired Trung Nam Solar Power as a subsidiary. Meanwhile, the Trung Nam Group has lost control of this enterprise.

Who is the Owner of ACIT?

ACIT was established in November 2006 in Hanoi. In July 2015, the company was reissued its tax code. The business registration at that time showed that ACIT had a charter capital of only 17.5 billion VND, 60% of which was held by General Director Nguyen Ngoc Phuong. The remaining shareholders were not disclosed.

At that time, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phuong was a well-known entrepreneur in the electrical industry. In addition to ACIT, Mr. Phuong also owned Smosa Vietnam Technology Company, established in 2015, specializing in the production and trading of precision mechanics, electrical equipment, and electrical cabinets…

It is known that Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phuong has many years of experience working in the Capital Military Zone, companies such as Thang Long or Ha Thanh, before joining ACIT in 2010.

About five years later, in April 2020, Mr. Pham Dinh Thang suddenly became the Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director and the sole legal representative of ACIT.

Mr. Pham Dinh Thang

At this time, ACIT moved its headquarters from Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phuong’s private residence to the Mandarin Garden 2 building, located at 99 Tan Mai, Hoang Mai, Hanoi.

It is worth noting that before officially becoming the Chairman, Mr. Thang had already been present in a leadership role at the company since at least 2009.

Four months after Mr. Thang became Chairman, ACIT increased its charter capital from 225.89 billion VND to 525.89 billion VND. In January 2021, the company significantly increased its capital to 2,025.8 billion VND, and again to 2,800 billion VND in December 2023.

In addition to his role at ACIT, the businessman, born in 1981, is also a founding shareholder, holding a 15% stake in Electricity of Region 1 Joint Stock Company, along with several giants in the electrical industry such as Mr. Ho Ngàn Chi (28%), Mr. Dam The Phuong (12%)…

According to PV’s data, in September 2022, Mr. Pham Dinh Thang pledged 100,000 non-convertible, non-warrant-attached, and unsecured corporate bonds with a total par value of 10 billion VND at Vietcombank’s Hoang Mai branch.

In January 2023, Mr. Pham Dinh Thang purchased 9.5 million HHV shares of Deo Ca Transport Infrastructure Investment Joint Stock Company. As a result, he increased his ownership from 7.8 million shares (a rate of 2.54%) to 17.3 million shares (a rate of 5.62%), officially becoming a major shareholder of HHV. The transaction was executed on January 18, 2023.

However, at the end of May 2023, Mr. Thang reported that he was no longer a major shareholder of HHV due to the transfer of shares to his wife, Ms. Tran Thi Ngoan. Specifically, on May 26, 2023, Mr. Thang transferred more than 3.7 million shares to Ms. Ngoan. On May 31, 2023, he transferred an additional 3.5 million shares to his wife. After these two transactions, Mr. Thang held just over 12.7 million shares, equivalent to a rate of 4.14% in HHV, while Ms. Ngoan increased her holding rate to 2.36%.