Vietnam (2006 - 2014)

The first development aid project designed by our company under the auspices of the MIT was approved by the government for the period of 2006-2010 under the title "Acquisition of a raw material base for industrial use in the glass industry in the southern area of central Vietnam". Its main objective was to verify and to evaluate the sources of the raw materials of glass sands and of other minerals (feldspar, kaolin) for the development of the glass industry in Vietnam in prospective areas of the provinces of Thua Tien Hue, Quang Tri (over 300 km²) and Phu Tho (cca. 150 km²); also, additionally, the calculation of the reserves of verified deposits, pilot studies concerning adjustment of the raw materials, plans for the development of a mining process, including proposals for the redevelopment and the revitalisation of the excavated area and for the evaluation of the impacts of the anticipated mining projects on the environment. An integral part of this project was also the transfer of know-how, the training of specialists belonging to the partner organisation, i.e. the Vietnamese Geological Survey (GDGMV), specialists in the provincial departments of Natural Resources and the Environment (The Department of Natural Resources and Environment - DONRE) and the delivery of modern field, laboratory and surveying equipment.

The geological works implemented led to the discovery of a commercially significant deposit of glass sands in the Phong Dién district in the province of Thua Tien Hué (more than 50 million tons of explored reserves of a high quality quartz sand) and several potentially significant deposits of kaolin (in the Ha Hoá and Thanh Ba districts located in Phu Tho province). Technological tests demonstrated the suitability of these quartz sands for both the production of flat windshields and also for making cheap (barium) crystal glass.

In 2011, the Czech Development Agency (CDA) announced a tender for the provision of professional training for specialists of the State Geological Service (GDGMV) in Hanoi and for students of geological disciplines at the Technical University in Hué City. The offer that we submitted was assessed as being the best and following the signing of the relevant contract the actual implementation of all the project activities took place during the autumn months. The main objective of our lecturers during both trainings and workshops was to familiarise the Vietnamese participants with the application of modern methods of deposit exploration, mine design, mine surveying and EIA.

In 2012-2014, for the CDA, we implemented the new development project entitled "The Development of the Glass Industry in Central Vietnam", which builds on prior activities related to the international development aid provided by the CR. The main objective of this project in addition to the assessment of the economic potential of the local raw materials necessary for the production of a glass batch, in particular, is the strengthening of the technical and professional skills of the partner organisations, i.e. the State Geological Survey and its locally relevant Division in Vinh City by means of the vocational training of local specialists and in the manner of the delivery of modern technical equipment. The result was a definition of the three mineral resources of raw materials suitable for use in the glass industry: Phong Xuan (dolomitic limestone in the Phong Dien district, Thuong Quang (limestone in the Nam Dong district), and Bot Do (feldspar in the A Luoi district).

The result of our cooperation with the Botanical Garden in Prague is our participation in the project of preparing the documentation for the declaration of the Hon Ba National Park in southern Vietnam. At the cusp of 2012-2013 the purpose-designed geological mapping of this isolated mountain area, consisting mainly of granitic rocks was implemented. The mapping was focused mainly on the identification and the description of the phenomena arising from the process of the formation and the weathering of the various rocks and the characteristics of the soils that originate from them.

List of projects implemented in Vietnam: