Lee & Man Paper Manufacturing Limited has said it will resume work on its paper and pulp plant in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang this April.

The US$1.2 billion project is expected to be able to produce 600,000 tons of paper per year, but construction was suspended for years after Lee & Man Paper obtained the investment certificate from the local government in June 2007.

The first phase of the project would cost some $350 million, according to the investor.

The 100% foreign invested company is operated by the Lee & Man Paper Co Ltd, the Vietnamese subsidiary of the Chinese papermaker.

With construction restarted, it is expected that the plant will become operational by late 2015, according to Lee & Man Paper.

The Chinese firm has recently sought permission from the local government to open a seaport and build its own road to transport goods, as well as set up a customs station to serve the exports of its products.

The plant is located in the Phu Huu A industrial park in Chau Thanh District.

In related investment news, the government of coastal Ba Ria – Vung Tau Province granted investment licenses to nine businesses during a ceremony on Sunday. The recipients are the first investors to seek opportunities in the coastal province in the Lunar New Year.

The nine projects have a total registered investment of $343 million.

 These include the $34 million Vung Tau Lotte Mall project by Lotte Vietnam Co Ltd, which is completely owned by the South Korean company.

Another noteworthy project is the construction of a new oilrig worth VND4.55 trillion ($214.62 million) by PV Shipyard.

Last year Ba Ria – Vung Tau attracted nearly 300 new foreign invested projects with a total registered capital of more than $27 billion, but only $8.6 billion has been disbursed so far.