Vedan International (Holdings) says the acquisition of a monosodium glutamate (MSG) factory in Shanghai has been delayed until the first quarter of this year due to land zoning changes.
The Vietnam-based, Taiwanese-invested MSG and starch maker said it still had to pay 84 million yuan for the land-use rights for the operation, even though it had expected the transaction to be completed in August last year.
According to an announcement filed with the Hong Kong stock exchange, the company has submitted all required documents to the mainland authorities to obtain the land-use rights but the application may take more time due to recent changes in land planning.
'It was indicated by the relevant government authorities ... that all procedures could be completed before December 31, 2004. However, our directors recently have been informed that, due to recent revisions in land planning in the area, the relevant government authorities require additional time to process the application,' the company said.
In May last year, Vedan said it would acquire the business, land and ancillary facilities of the Shanghai MSG facility for a cash consideration of 144.38 million yuan.
It has already paid 51.8 million yuan for the business and another 8.58 million yuan for the ancillary facilities.
