On July 20, the head of the HCM City High Technology Park Management Board (SHTP), Nguyen Anh Thi, issued a document replying to VietNamNet’s questions about a project on manufacturing 3D printing machines and providing software services and product manufacturing on 3D printing machines using carbon fiber polymer materials from Arevo Vietnam Company Ltd.

The project had total registered investment capital of $19.5 million. The company leased a workshop in the hi-tech park in Thu Duc City to implement the project.

The total investment capital had reached $7 million by the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, including $1 million of contributed capital and $6 million in loans. Investors planned to contribute $12.5 million between from the first quarter 2023 and the fourth quarter in 2024.

Regarding project execution, from the second quarter 2021 to the fourth quarter 2022, the project operated at 100 percent of capacity in Phase 1, planning to put out 2,812 products a year and revenue of $6.337 million.

By 2025, the project had been operating at 100 percent of capacity. It was expected that output would be 4,020 unit products a year and turnover would be $12.003 million a year.

The products provided in Phase 1 (2020-2022) were Aqua 3D printers using carbon fiber reinforced polymer, design and simulation software (Xplorator). Phase 2 (2023-2025) products were: carbon fiber reinforced polymer materials (PEEK, Nylon...) for 3D printing, and 3D printing service from carbon fiber.

On May 15, Arevo submitted a dossier on terminating the operation of the project. The company explained that the total implemented capital was VND165.59 billion, or 35.9 percent of total investment capital.

The company installed all machines needed, tested the operation, and was sure that the factory could satisfy all requirements to become operational in the first quarter in 2021.

The company manufactured 3D printing machines successfully and sold the machines to orders. The Xplorator software technology (design, simulation, printer control) was fully developed and integrated with 3D printers when sold to customers.

However, the production of other materials and 3D printing services had not started. Meanwhile, Arevo terminated the workshop liquidating the contract on December 9, 2022.

SHTP concluded that the project had not completed the capital contribution of $19.5 million as initially planned and shown in the investment registration certificate. Also, Arevo Company had not implemented the project at the time of investment registration on December 9, 2022, or before the Phase 1 of the project had ended.

Arevo failed to put the factory in Phase 1 into full operation as committed, and could not show the number of products it manufactured, as well as the revenue it could obtain as committed, thus making it difficult to continue the project in the second phase. As a result, the project ended on May 15, 2023.

Arevo Vietnam was established by former Facebook Vietnam CEO Le Diep Kieu Trang and her husband Sonny Vu. 

Tran Chung