Dong Nai and Dong Phu companies under the Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG) on June 19 launched a new phase of rubber planting in Sombo district, Kratie province of Cambodia.

The move was part of the VRG plan to grow 100,000 hectares of rubber trees in Cambodia by 2012.

Addressing the launching ceremony, VRG Chairman Le Quang Thung said the group’s investment in Cambodia has not only yielded profit but also brought social benefits. Dong Nai and Dong Phu companies have so far provided jobs to over 2,000 Cambodian workers at their rubber plantations.

Senior Minister of the Cambodia Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction Im Chhun Lim said that the VRG has contributed to job generation and poverty reduction in Cambodia .

The two companies have been licensed to grow rubber trees on 16,000 ha of land in Sombo district. In the 2008-2009 crop, they planted over 2,000 ha and plan to put an additional 2,000 ha under rubber trees in 2010.

The VRG said it plans to invest 55 million USD in growing an additional 20,000 hectares of rubber trees in five Cambodian provinces this year, including 8,900 ha in Kampong Thom, 7,500 ha in Kratie, 1,500 ha in Ratanakiri, 1,100 ha in Stung Treng, and 1,000 ha in Preah Vihear.

Those rubber plantations are expected to begin producing latex in 2017 with a total output of 150,000 tonnes to be increased to 250,000 tonnes in 2020.

By the end of last year, Cambodia had 123,000 hectares of rubber trees, 50,000 hectares of which were yielding 50,000 tonnes of dry latex for export./.