[PHNOM PENH POST]
A Japanese firm and an Australian company planned to invest more than
US$35 million in a banana plantation, a factory and a port in Koh Kong
province, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said
yesterday.
Australia-based Indochina Gateway Capital and Japan’s
Sumifru Corporation would jointly invest in banana cultivation in the
province’s Thma Baing district, MAFF plann-ing office director Por
Ratana said.
The proposed $35 million investment would be for banana harvesting only.
No figure was available for how much the companies planned to invest in a proposed banana-drying factory and port.
Por Ratana said the comp-anies would export the fruit to African countries.
The companies had yet to sign a memorandum of understanding with Cambodia, Por Ratana noted.
The
quality of the soil in the province could also alter the companies’
investment decision, as well as the crop that is planted in the area, he
said.
“The companies hired a Malaysian company to study the
quality of the land for banana cultivation. But if land is not suitable
for bananas, they will grow rubber trees or other crops,” Por Ratana
said, adding that the research process could take a year.
The
companies would import banana seeds from Africa and would export small
banana trees, fresh bananas and processed bananas, Por Ratana said.
Koh
Kong provincial governor Sun Dara said the two companies had been
studying the land and other impacts on a 5,000-hectare economic land
concession in the district, but so far they had yet to receive formal
permiss-ion to invest.
The proposed investment would not have
negative effects on the population living at the proposed investment
site, Sun Dara claimed.
Suppose there are is a big expenditure on this project.
ReplyDeleteIt would be great to invest with it.