Vietnam

The Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and UBC hosted the inaugural meeting of the Japan-Canada-US Trilateral Cooperation Conference Series at the Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies in Vancou

Ottawa-based International Datacasting Corporation, a provider of advanced solutions for the distribution of broadband multimedia content, announced that it has received orders valued at over US$70

Montreal-based EcoloCap Solutions Inc., a provider of solutions to help businesses combat climate change, announced that it has signed additional projects and preliminary agreements in Vietnam and China. In Vietnam, EcoloCap has signed agreements with one Biomass Valorization project and three new Hydro Power projects. In China agreements were signed with four large Industrial Improvements projects involving two steel mills, one cement production complex and one coal mine. Most contracts are for a period of 17 years.

Montreal-based EcoloCap Solutions, a provider of integrated solutions to help businesses combat climate change, announced the signing of five hydro power projects in Vietnam for an estimated reduction of 3.1 million tons of carbon emissions over the life of the agreement, convertible to tradable carbon credits (CERs) under the Clean Development Mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol. At today’s market price, CERs are trading at some US$32. The projects represent an investment of US$135 million and the agreements were originally signed with United Best Technology Limited of Hong Kong.

CCL Industries Inc., a Toronto-based company that provides specialty packaging and labeling solutions for the consumer products and healthcare industries, announced that it plans to invest $25 million over 2008 and 2009 to expand its CCL Label operations in Asia. CCL will build four new greenfield plants and also expand some of its existing facilities in the region. A second plant in Thailand will produce beverage and battery label products for Southaast Asia and Australia. CCL will enter Vietnam with a new facility in Ho Chi Minh City, focused on personal care products.

Toronto-based Asian Coast Development Ltd. (ACDL), a privately held luxury resort developer, has been awarded an investment certificate by the government of Vietnam that allows for the construction of Vietnam’s largest tourism venture, the Ho Tram Strip. The planned C$4.2 billion, 9,000-room luxury hotel resort and entertainment destination will be located on the beaches of Vung Tau Province in southern Vietnam. Phase 1 of the project - a five-star hotel resort with 1,100 rooms, a championship golf course and a Las Vegas-style casino - is slated to open in late 2010.

The Embassy of Canada in Hanoi, Vietnam announced that Canada and Vietnam have signed a $15 million Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the Vietnam Provincial Environmental Governance Project (VPEG). Funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) for five years (2008-2013), the project will help Vietnam build capacity at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, other related ministries and provincial departments of natural resources and environment to effectively manage industrial pollution.

Vietnam News Agency officially opened its new bureau in Ottawa this week. The ceremony included Vietnams Ambassador to Canada, Nguyen Duc Hung; representatives from Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery; and Bryon Wilfer, Chairman of the Canada-Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Group.

The Asia Pacific Foundation announced the recipients of its 2008 Media Fellowship program that offers established Canadian journalists, in any media channel, the opportunity to spend time in Asia researching and preparing stories and programs. The Foundation awarded four grants this year of $10,000. The Media Fellowships are part of the Asia Pacific Foundation Research Grants Program, funded through the proceeds of an endowment established by the Government of Canada and designed to stimulate informed discussion on Canadas relations with Asia.

The Government of Canada announced that Saint Mary’s University will receive $2.8 million to assist the people of Vietnam in making the transition from a mainly agrarian economy to one that competes more broadly in the global marketplace. The project is funded by the University Partnerships in Cooperation and Development Program of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Saint Mary’s University will work with Vietnam’s National Economics University to modernize its curriculum and help it develop business skills training programs.