Facilities Lease Agreement
Exhibit
10.25
This
Commercial Lease Agreement ("Lease") is made and effective
December 11, 2009, by and between
(1)
AgFeed Industries, Inc. (“AgFeed”) ("Landlord"); and
(2) Hypor
Agfeed Breeding Company Inc. ("Tenant").
The
Landlord has obtained a valid lease in respect of the collectively-owned land
(having an area of about 217.6 Mou (145139.2 square meters)) located in Futian
Village, Futian Township, China, and has built a pig breeding facility on such
land (“Leased
Premises”).
The
Landlord desires to lease the Leased Premises to the Tenant for the purposes of
operating a pig breeding facility and the Tenant desires to lease the Leased
Premises from Landlord for the term, at the rental and upon the covenants,
conditions and provisions herein set forth.
THEREFORE,
in consideration of the mutual promises contained herein, and for other good and
valuable consideration, it is agreed:
1.
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Term.
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The
initial term (“Initial
Term”) of the Lease shall be ten (10) years, beginning on the date
of registration of the Tenant as a Wholly-Owned Foreign Entity with the
appropriate Chinese authorities and ending on the tenth
(10th) anniversary of such date of
registration.
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Tenant
may renew the Lease:
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o
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Term
and rent of the extended lease shall be determined at the time of
renewal.
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o
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Tenant
shall exercise such renewal option, if at all, by providing written notice
to Landlord not less than three (3) months prior to the expiration of the
Initial Term.
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o
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Unless
otherwise agreed to by Landlord and Tenant at renewal, all other
covenants, conditions and provisions as contained in this Lease will not
change.
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2.
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Rent
and Other Payments.
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The
Tenant shall pay to Landlord: (1) a rental payment of 1,950,648
RMB per year, payable in instalments of 162,554 RMB per month, such rental
payment subject to increase or decrease upon determination of Landlord’s
final project cost to construct and deliver the Leased Premises to Tenant;
and (2) any such additional amounts due and owing pursuant to Article 7 of
this Lease for Tenant’s portion of any lease and general real estate taxes
and fees billed by Landlord.
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Each
rental instalment payment shall be due in advance on the first day of the
calendar month for each quarter during the Lease term to Landlord at the
following address:
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Rm.
A1001-1002, Tower 16, Hengmao Int’l
Center
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000
X. Xxxxxxxxxx Xx.
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Xxxxxxxx,
Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
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XXX
000000
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Late
payment of the Lease is subject to an interest rate of 0.5% per
month.
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Appendix
1 of this Lease is a site map illustrating the buildings and layout of the
Leased Premises at the time of signing of this Lease, as well as an
associated description of the buildings of the Leased Premises with key
contents.
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Appendix
2 of this Lease is a full list of all equipment included in this
Lease.
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3.
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Termination
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The
Landlord and the Tenant may mutually agree in writing to terminate the
lease agreement.
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Unless
there is early termination, the lease agreement shall terminate upon the
date of expiration.
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Not
due to the reasons attributable to the Landlord (except for occurrence of
a force majeure event), for early termination of this lease agreement by
the Tenant, the Tenant shall provide 1 (one) year written notice and 1
(one) quarter penalty payment.
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Not
due to the reasons attributable to the Tenant (except for occurrence of a
force majeure event), for early termination of this lease agreement by the
Landlord, the Landlord shall provide 1 (one) year written notice to the
Tenant, and the Landlord will be subject to a penalty payment equal to all
losses incurred by the Tenant caused by such early termination in addition
to all reasonable actual costs and expenses incurred thereby arising out
of transfer of its business to new location. Reconciliation and payment
shall be made upon receipts of the
move.
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2
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Both
Landlord and Tenant may be excused from further performance under this
Lease in the event of any of the
following:
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The
Leased Premises and/or the underlying land are so seriously damaged due to
an event of force majeure that further performance of this Lease is
practically impossible;
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o
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The
underlying land is expropriated by governmental authorities;
or
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o
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The
Leased Premises is dismantled pursuant to an order by competent government
authorities or any restrictions on the rights and title in respect of the
Leased Premises or right to use the underlying land are imposed by any
judicial or administrative bodies according to
law.
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At
the time of early termination or termination upon expiry, all buildings
and equipment should be left in working order except for normal wear and
tear.
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4.
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Maintenance
and Repairs
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During
the term of this Lease, the Landlord shall be responsible for all major or
structural maintenance and repairs (“Repairs”). Major
or structural Repairs means deficiencies caused by faulty design and/or
poor construction, including subsidence due to insufficient compaction of
fill dirt.
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If
the Landlord fails to make such Repairs within fifteen (15) days of
receipt of a Repair notice from the Tenant, the Tenant shall have the
right to make or have made the necessary repairs for the account of the
landlord and/or the right to terminate this Lease by issuing a termination
notice to the Landlord.
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Damage
caused by intention or neglect shall be repaired at the expense of the
responsible party
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Unless
otherwise provided under this Lease, minor Repairs shall be carried out by
the Tenant at its own expense. Minor Repairs mean routine maintenance and
repair of buildings and equipment as well as anything that can be
maintained or repaired by the Tenant’s
staff.
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5.
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Technology
Updates
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The
Tenant shall have the right, upon obtaining Landlord's consent in writing,
such consent not unreasonably withheld, to remodel and make additions,
improvements and replacements to all or any part of the Leased Premises
from time to time as Tenant may deem
desirable.
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3
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The
Tenant and the Landlord shall to come to an agreement in writing regarding
who is responsible for any technology updates, costs and construction and
a re-negotiation of the relevant terms and provisions of this Lease, if
necessary for such purpose.
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If
during the term of the Lease the Tenant wishes to expand or increase the
size of the farm, the parties shall re-negotiate the relevant terms and
provisions of the Lease for such
purpose.
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6.
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Representations
and Warranties of AgFeed:
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AgFeed
has a valid lease interest in the Leased Premises during the entire term
of this Lease, including any extension of this
Lease.
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AgFeed
has obtained or completed all necessary approval, registration or filing
with the competent land authorities in respect of its lease with the
relevant land owner.
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AgFeed
has obtained all necessary permission or consent from the relevant land
owner to sublease the entire Leased Premises to the Tenant for pig
breeding and farming business.
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AgFeed
has obtained all necessary governmental permission or consent regarding
the Leased Premises being used for operating a pig breeding business,
including but not limited to any environmental approval and/or farming
construction and operation permit.
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AgFeed
has obtained the ownership to all its farm buildings and creates no
mortgage or any other security interest or restriction over such buildings
in favour of any entities or
individuals.
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AgFeed’s
right to use the land on which the Leased Premises is constructed is free
and clear of any mortgage, security interest, other third party’s rights
or restrictions in favour of any entities or
individuals.
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7.
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Lease
and General Real Estate Taxes.
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The
Landlord shall pay, prior to delinquency, any and all lease and general
real estate taxes and fees levied by the competent government authorities
in connection with use of the Leased Premises (including owning and use of
all the farm buildings thereon), whether required or not at the signing of
this lease and newly instituted or coming due during the term of this
Lease on the Leased Premises. On an annual basis, at Landlord’s billing,
Tenant shall promptly remit to Landlord Tenant’s share of such lease and
general real estate taxes and fees related to the farm buildings
thereon.
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8.
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Insurance.
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The
Landlord shall maintain Leasehold insurance covering all buildings and all
equipment for fire and natural disaster and any extended insurance
coverage on the building and any equipment in the Leased Premises in such
amount as the Landlord shall deem
appropriate.
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The
Tenant shall be responsible, at its expense, for fire and extended
coverage insurance on all of its personal property, including the movable
devices for business located in the Leased
Premises.
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Tenant
shall, at its own expense, maintain a policy or policies of comprehensive
general liability insurance with respect to the particular activities at
the Leased Premises, with the premiums thereon fully paid on or before due
date. Such insurance policy shall be issued by and binding upon an
insurance company approved by Landlord, and shall afford minimum
protection of not less than US$ 500,000 for single limit
coverage of bodily injury, property damage or combination
thereof.
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9.
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Utilities.
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The
Tenant shall pay all charges for coal, electricity, telephone and other
services and utilities used by the Tenant on the Leased Premises during
the term of this Lease, unless otherwise expressly agreed to in writing by
Landlord.
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At
commencement of the Lease, Landlord shall deliver the Leased Premises to
Tenant with back-up electric generator, back-up water supply, and waste
treatment/disposal systems in place that are commercially reasonable for
Tenant’s activities on the Leased Premises that are contemplated by this
Lease.
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As
part of the Wuning farm’s waste management program, Tenant shall receive
the economic benefit of any methane energy produced, if any, by any
Digester system fuelled by farm hog
effluent.
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10.
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Signs.
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The
Tenant shall have the right to place on the Leased Premises, at locations
selected by the Tenant, any signs which are permitted by applicable zoning
ordinances and private
restrictions.
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11.
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Entry.
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Upon
the prior written notice, the Landlord shall have the right to enter upon
the Leased Premises at reasonable hours to inspect the same, provided the
Landlord shall not thereby unreasonably interfere with the Tenant's
business on the Leased Premises.
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The
Landlord must adhere to the Tenants Bio Security Protocols regarding Pig
Freedom. See Appendix 4 of this Lease–Bio Security Protocols of
the Tenant.
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12.
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Damage
and Destruction.
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If
the Leased Premises or any part thereof is damaged by fire, casualty or
structural defects, such damage or defects not being the result of any act
of negligence by the Tenant or by any of the Tenant's agents, employees or
invitees, and the same cannot be used for the Tenant's purposes, then the
Tenant shall have the right within twenty four (24) hours following such
damage to elect by notice to Landlord to terminate this Lease as of the
date of such damage, without any surviving obligations to Tenant
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In
the event of minor damage caused by fire, casualty or structural defects,
such damage or defects not being the result of any act of negligence by
the Tenant or by any of the Tenant's agents, employees or invitees, to any
part of the Leased Premises, and if such damage does not render the Leased
Premises unusable for the Tenant's purposes, the Landlord shall promptly
repair such damage at the cost of the Landlord. The Landlord shall act
within fifteen (15) days following the repair request made by the Tenant.
If the Landlord fails to act within fifteen (15) days of the request by
the Tenant, the Tenant may conduct such repair but the cost of the repair
shall be borne by the Landlord in accordance with the provisions of
Article 20 of this Lease.
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If
during the term of this Lease the Leased Premises become inoperable for
the Tenants purposes, caused by the same as above, in whole or in part,
then the Tenant shall be relieved from paying all the rents and other
charges during the period that the Leased property is
inoperable.
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Lease
payments paid in advance for any such periods that the Lease property is
inoperable shall be credited on the next ensuing payments, if
any. If no further payments are to be made, any such advance
payments shall be refunded to
Tenant.
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The
provisions of this paragraph extend not only to the matters aforesaid, but
also to any occurrence which is beyond the Tenant's reasonable control and
which renders the Leased Premises inoperable in whole or in part, for the
Tenant's purposes.
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13.
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Tenant’s
Default.
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In
the event of a default made by the Tenant in the payment of rent due to
Landlord, the Tenant shall have thirty (30) days after receipt of written
notice thereof to cure such
default.
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In
the event of a default made by the Tenant in any of the other covenants or
conditions to be kept, observed and performed by the Tenant, the Tenant
shall have forty-five (45) days after receipt of written notice thereof to
cure such default.
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In
the event that the Tenant fails to cure any default within the time
allowed under this paragraph, the Landlord may declare the term of this
Lease ended and terminated by giving the Tenant written notice of such
intention.
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14.
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Quiet
Possession.
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The
Landlord covenants and warrants that upon performance by the Tenant of its
obligations hereunder, the Landlord will keep and maintain the Tenant in
exclusive, quiet, peaceable and undisturbed and uninterrupted possession
of the Leased Premises during the term of this
Lease.
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15.
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Notice.
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Any
notice required or permitted under this Lease shall be deemed sufficiently
given or served if:
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(1) sent
by certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed as follows:
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Landlord:
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Rm.
A1001-1002, Tower 16, Hengmao Int’l
Center
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333
S. Guangchang Rd.
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Nanchang,
Jiangxi Province
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PRC
330003
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Tenant: Rm.
A1001-1002, Tower 16, Hengmao Int’l
Center
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000
X. Xxxxxxxxxx Xx.
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Xxxxxxxx,
Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx
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XXX
000000
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(2) sent
by courier, three (3) business days after posting it, to the above
address,
(3) sent
by fax, when a confirmation report of transmission is recorded by the sender's
facsimile machine.
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The
Landlord and the Tenant shall each have the right from time to time to
change the place where notice is to be given under this paragraph by
written notice thereof to the other
party.
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16.
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Waiver.
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No
waiver of any default of the Landlord or the Tenant hereunder shall be
implied from any omission to take any action on account of such default if
such default persists or is repeated, and no express waiver shall affect
any default other than the default specified in the express waiver and
that only for the time and to the extent therein stated. One or more
waivers by the Landlord or the Tenant shall not be construed as a waiver
of a subsequent breach of the same covenant, term or
condition.
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17.
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Successors.
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The
provisions of this Lease shall extend to and be binding upon the Landlord
and the Tenant and their respective legal representatives, successors and
assigns.
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18.
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Consent.
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The
Landlord shall not unreasonably withhold or delay its consent with respect
to any matter for which the Landlord's consent is required or desirable
under this Lease.
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19.
Return of the Farm and assets on termination
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The
tenant agrees to return the farm and all leased assets to the Landlord
within 15 days of the termination date and in normal operating
condition.
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20.
Landlord’s Default.
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Unless
otherwise provided under this Lease, if there is a default with respect to
any of the Landlord's covenants, warranties or representations under this
Lease, and if the default continues more than forty-five (45) days after
notice in writing from the Tenant to the Landlord specifying the default,
the Tenant may, at its option and without affecting any other remedy
hereunder, cure such default and deduct the cost thereof from the next
accruing instalment or instalments of rent payable hereunder until the
Tenant shall have been fully reimbursed for such expenditures, together
with interest thereon at a rate equal to the lesser of six percent (6%)
per annum or the then highest lawful rate. If this
Lease terminates prior to the Tenant's receiving full reimbursement, the
Landlord shall pay the un-reimbursed balance plus accrued interest to the
Tenant on demand. Otherwise, the Tenant may, at its option, terminate the
agreement and the Landlord shall bear the liabilities for breach of this
Lease.
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21. Compliance
with Law.
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The
Tenant and the Landlord each shall comply with all laws, orders,
ordinances and other public requirements now or hereafter affecting the
Leased Premises.
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Landlord
shall be responsible for any cleanup costs, penalties and legal costs
associated with a violation of any environmental laws, ordinances, rules,
requirements or regulations relating to the preservation or regulation of
the public health, welfare or environment or the regulation or control of
toxic or hazardous substances or materials directly caused by the
condition of the Leased Premises as delivered to the Tenant or the
improper installation of any systems by the Landlord on or in the Leased
Premises; provided
however, Landlord shall not be responsible in the event Tenant
fails to comply with any effluent handling procedures or any waste
management system operation procedures prescribed by the
Landlord.
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22. Final
Agreement.
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This
Lease terminates and supersedes all prior understandings or agreements on
the subject matter hereof. This Lease may be modified only by a further
writing that is duly executed by both
parties.
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23. This
Lease conforms to all relevant clauses in the Shareholders Agreement of Hypor
Agfeed Breeding Company Inc. that will
affect the performance of this Lease by both parties.
24. Registration
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Landlord
shall complete the relevant registration or filing procedures in respect
of this Lease within thirty (30) days of execution of this
Lease.
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25.
Counterparts and Language
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This
agreement shall be signed in two (2) counterparts in both Chinese and
English languages. Each party will hold one (1)
copy. In case of any dispute, the English version will be
followed.
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[signature
page follows]
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This
Lease is entered into by the duly authorised representatives of the parties on
the date stated on the first page of this Lease.
Landlord: AgFeed
Industries, Inc.
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By:
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/s/ Li Songyan
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Name:
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Li
Songyan
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Title:
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Chairman
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Date:
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December
11, 2009
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Tenant: Hypor Agfeed
Breeding Company Inc.
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By:
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/s/ Li Songyan
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Name:
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Li
Songyan
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Title:
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Authorized
Signatory
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Date:
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December
11,
2009
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