Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on April 14 launched an order to start
the construction of the International Gateway Port in the northern Hai
Phong city under the Vietnam 2020 seaport development plan.
Hai Phong International Gateway Port is defined as one of
the country’s key infrastructure projects that upon completion in 2016
will play a part in transforming Vietnam into a strong sea nation.
The port will have modern cargo-handling equipment,
and be capable of receiving container ships of up to 8,000 TEUs . Core
infrastructure will be built in Lach Huyen port area in Cat Hai island
district, according to a detailed plan that took nine years to prepare.
Addressing the ceremony, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan
Dung underscored the importance of the port’s construction to the
long-term socio-economic development of Hai Phong and the region,
particularly when the existing Hai Phong port is overloaded and fails to
meet the growing demand of marine transportation.
The Government leader urged relevant agencies to exert efforts to
complete the work as scheduled. He also thanked the Japanese Government
for its financial and technical support, expressing his belief that the
strategic partnership between the two countries will reap further
positive results for the common goal of peace and prosperity in the
Asia-Pacific region.
Construction of the port is
divided into two parts. Part one is managed by the Vietnam Marine
Administration with investment of over 18.6 trillion VND (885 million
USD) sourced from Official Development Assistance and the State budget.
It covers the building of port infrastructure.
The
second part, a joint venture of Vietnamese and Japanese enterprises with
more than 6.57 trillion VND in investment, will build two wharves with a
total length of 750 metres, capable of handling 100,000-tonne container
ships.
Once operating, Hai Phong International
Gateway Port will direct exports from the country’s northern region to
US and European markets and vice versa without having to go through
Singapore or Hong Kong’s ports.-VNA