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On April 27, 2026, Keppel Ltd announced that its subsidiary Corredance Pte. Ltd. (CD) filed a notice of arbitration with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) against three partners: Denver Power Ltd, Viet Phu Real Estate Joint Stock Company, and Tran Thai Real Estate Co., Ltd. The arbitration focuses on claims related to the investment agreement signed on March 2, 2016 between the parties at Empire City Joint Venture. The dispute arose after the joint venture received notice identifying an additional land-use fee amounting to about 6,877 billion VND (approximately 6.9 trillion VND) by the end of 2025. Keppel requests that the partners bear full responsibility and compensate all losses arising from this financial obligation. Pressure from overdue tax debt: This legal action occurs in the context of Ho Chi Minh City’s tax authorities taking debt collection measures against the Empire City project. As of March 26, 2026, the Empire City Joint Venture recorded total tax, penalties, and late payments of 6,972.9 billion VND. Of this amount, overdue debt over 90 days stood at 1,648 billion VND. The tax authority also issued notices regarding travel prohibitions for Mr. Vo Sy Nhan, the joint venture’s legal representative and CEO, if the obligations are not fulfilled within 30 days from the notice issued in early April 2026. Legal basis and company’s requests: Corredance argues that the obligation to pay the additional fees falls on the partners based on commitments and guarantees recorded in the investment agreement. These commitments relate to land-use approvals and associated fees the joint venture has received for the project. Currently the Empire City Joint Venture has submitted an official petition to the authorities to reconsider the decision and the assessment of the additional land-use fee. In the meantime, Keppel assesses that the Empire City project remains profitable based on the land asset’s book value, but overall profitability will be affected if the partners do not fully bear the incurred costs. Project scale and planning changes: Empire City is a 14.5-hectare complex in the core of Thu Thiem New Urban Area with a total investment of USD 1.2 billion, notable for the Empire 88 Tower rising to 88 floors. After planning adjustments in 2017, the project increased total floor area to more than 763,438 square meters and housing units to 3,787. Although more than 1,200 apartments have been handed to residents, the project is currently facing prolonged stagnation due to unresolved additional financial obligations as per the auditor’s conclusions. The revaluation of land prices under new criteria significantly increased the financial obligation compared with the 3,600 billion VND paid in 2017. Read more
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