CIRCULAR

GUIDING THE COAL TRADING CONDITIONS

Pursuant to Resolution No. 01/2007/QH12 dated July 31, 2007 of the first session of the XII th National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on organizational structure of the Government and number of deputy Prime Ministers of the Government in the XII th term;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 86/2002/ND-CP dated November 5, 2006 defining the functions, task, powers and organizational structure of the ministries and ministerial-level agencies;

Pursuant to Decree No. 59/2006/ND-CP dated June 12, 2006 of the Government detailing the Commercial Law regarding goods and services banned from business, subject to business restriction or to conditional business;

The Ministry of Industry and Trade guides the coal trading conditions as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. Subjects and scope of application

This Circular applies to business entities being traders according to the provisions at Point b, Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree No. 59/2006/ND-CP dated June 12, 2006 of the Government detailing the Commercial Law regarding goods and services banned from business, subject to business restriction or to conditional business; which are engaged in coal trading activities in Vietnamese territory, including domestically trading, import, export, transportation, warehousing and agencies.

2. Interpretation of terms:

a) "Coal" is an item subject to conditional business according to the stipulations specified in Article 7 of Decree No. 59/2006/ND-CP dated June 12, 2006 of the Government detailing the Commercial Law regarding goods and services banned from business, subject to business restriction or to conditional business, including all kinds of fossil coals and coals originated from fossils, raw or processed.

b) "Coal with legal origin" means coal, which is explored and processed by organizations and individuals having exploration licenses, licenses on exploration and gathering; and licenses on coal processing granted by the competent State agencies according to the 1996 Law on Minerals and Law amending and supplementing a number of Articles of the 2005 Law on Minerals; and documents guiding the implementation of the 1996 Law on Minerals and Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2005 Law on Minerals; coal legally imported; coal confiscated due to the law violations and coal sold by order of the courts according to the provisions of law.

II. COAL TRADING CONDITIONS

Traders engaged in coal trading must satisfy all the conditions specified at Points b, c, d, Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree No. 59/2006/ND-CP dated June 12, 2006 of the Government detailing the Commercial Law regarding goods and services banned from business, subject to business restriction or to conditional business, as follows:

1. Having certificates of business registration granted by the competent agencies according to the provisions of law on business registration.

2. Owning or leasing business places, means of transport, means of loading, warehouses, wharves, coal weighing and measuring means for their business objectives; meeting the technical requirements, requirements on safety conditions, environmental hygiene and fire and explosion prevention and fighting according to the current stipulations of the State.

- The transport means must have guarded equipment to avoid dust scattering and to meet the requirements on environmental protection.

- The places and locations of coal wharves, loading and discharging berths must comply with the planning of local wharves and berths; have temporary coal storehouses and safety equipment for loading to the transport means and measures for environmental protection.

- Coal storehouses, coal trading stores and stations must have separate holds to keep different kinds of coal; the positions of these holds must be appropriate to the construction planning of the localities and meet the requirements on environmental protection and hygiene as well as transport security order according to the provisions of law. For self-burning coals, the traders must have measures and means for fire prevention and fighting licensed and inspected by the local fire prevention and fighting agencies.

3. Management and technical cadres and staffs directly engaged in coal trading services must have professional skills and good health according to the provisions of law.

4. Traders shall only be permitted to trade in coal with legal origins as specified at Point b, Clause 2, Section I of this Circular.

5. For coal export activities, except for satisfying all the requirements specified in this Circular, the traders must comply with the stipulations in Circular No. 05/2007/TT-BCT dated October 22, 2007 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade guiding the coal export.

III. HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

1. During the process of coal trading, traders must comply with the stipulations of this Circular and relevant provisions of law. In case of violation, they shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be handled according to the provisions of law.

2. Traders engaged in trading of coal, which have no legal origins shall be administratively sanctioned according to the stipulations at Point 3, Clause 4, Article 1 of Decree No. 77/2007/ND-CP dated May 10, 2007 of the Government amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 150/2004/ND-CP dated July 29, 2004 of the Government on the administrative sanctions in the mineral field.

3. Cadres and civil servants who abuse their positions and powers and violate the provisions on coal trading conditions specified in this Circular shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined, administratively sanctioned or examined for penal liability according to the provisions of law.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION

1. This Circular takes effect 15 days after its publication in CONG BAO and replaces Circular No. 02/1999/TT-BCN dated June 14, 1999 of the Ministry of Industry guiding the coal trading conditions.

2. The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall assume the prime responsibility for and coordinate with the relevant ministries, branches and localities in periodically organizing the inspection of the satisfaction of the coal trading conditions according to the stipulations of this Circular.

3. When the coal traders have signals of violating the stipulations of this Circular, the People’s Committee of the provinces and centrally-run cities where they operate shall have to direct the competent agencies to inspect and timely handle.

4. Any problems arising during the process of implementation of this Circular must be timely reported in written by traders or relevant organizations or individuals to the Ministry of Industry and Trade for consideration and settlement.