LOS ANGELES and FRANKFURT, Germany, June 21, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PHIGroup, Inc. (OTCBB:PHIE) (Frankfurt:PR7) (XETRA:PR7) (WKN A0RNQV), www.phiglobal.com/">www.phiglobal.com, an M & A company with diversified holdings in real estate development, energy, natural resources and special situations, today announced the groundbreaking ceremony for Linh Thanh Quang Binh Exploiting and Processing High Calcium Carbonate Powder Joint Stock Company, held at 8:30 a.m., June 21, 2010 in Chau Hoa Commune, Tuyen Hoa District, Quang Binh Province, Northern Vietnam. PHIGroup currently assists Linh Thanh in its capitalization plan, growth strategy, and mergers and acquisitions.
Linh Thanh Quang Binh is the first company in Vietnam and Southeast Asia to use state-of-the-art equipment from Terruzzi Fercalx Group, an Italian company with over 110 years of experience in limestone processing technologies (www.terruzzifercalxgroup.com), to produce high calcium carbonate powder from limestone. The plant is located in Chau Hoa Commune, Tuyen Hoa District, Quang Binh Province, adjacent to its raw material quarry, which has a proven reserve of 60 million metric tons.
The company's products will be used for metallurgical industry, water treatment, and additives for paper, rubber, paint, asphalt, plastics, food processing, medicines, cosmetics, and numerous other applications.
Linh Thanh's high calcium carbonate powder project enjoys a number of distinctive advantages. In addition to the plant's proximity to the raw material source, this is the only mining project with both limestone and dolomite deposits at the same location. The company's plant has easy and convenient access to a waterway, a highway and a seaport. As the first company in Vietnam using modern production technology that provides continuous kiln system, gasification, and recovery of carbon dioxide, the company has received favorable incentives from the government of Vietnam.
Nguyen Thi Mai Hoa, Chairperson and CEO of Linh Thanh Group, the parent of Linh Thanh Quang Binh, said, "We are delighted to break ground for our high calcium carbonate mine in Quang Binh and want to extend our appreciation to various government agencies, our strategic partners, vendors and suppliers, customers, and staff for this exciting milestone. We look forward to providing high calcium carbonate products from this mine to meet the growing demands of the world markets."
Daniele Terruzzi, Managing Director of Terruzzi Fercalx Group, commented, "Above the logistic and marketing factors, that are well known, the greatest difference for this project is the choice to produce different lime products (quicklime, hydrated lime, PCC, etc.), using coal as fuel without the disadvantages of the ash contamination in the process. This is possible using the gasification technology of Terruzzi Fercalx that can use either lump coal or waste coal to produce the gas for the Fercalx Vertical Lime Kiln. This combination of factors will lead to the best quality with the lower operational costs and the highest flexibility, which are ideal for any industrial plants."
Henry Fahman, Chairman of PHIGroup, stated, "We are proud to be a part of this exciting event and are fully committed to assisting Linh Thanh Quang Binh to unlock its potential and create significant value for shareholders of both companies."
About Linh Thanh Quang Binh
Linh Thanh Quang Binh Exploiting and Processing High Calcium Carbonate Powder Joint Stock Company is a Vietnamese mining company currently focused on producing high calcium carbonate from limestone in Quang Binh Province, northern Vietnam. The company also has plans to acquire titanium and wolframite mines to expand the company's scope of business. Website: www.linhthanhgroup.com.
About PHIGroup, Inc.
PHIGroup develops real estate and natural resources, provides M&A advisory and consulting services and invests in special situations. PHIGroup, which specializes in raising capital and helping take companies public, is developing Philand Ranch, one of the largest master planned communities in Vietnam through its majority owned subsidiary Philand Ranch Limited (Frankfurt:1P8) (XETRA:1P8). This project includes Pointe91, a luxury resort and premium residential community in Quang Nam province in central Vietnam. PHIGroup is also engaged in mining in Southeast Asia through PHI Mining Group, Inc. (Pink Sheets:PHIG). Website: www.phiglobal.com.
Safe Harbor: This news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected on the basis of such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are made based upon management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management pursuant to the "safe-harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.