Van Phong Port Gets New Lease on Life

With Vietnam's first international transit port in the central province of Khanh Hoa back on track after almost being abandoned last year, the Government is scouting for foreign investors, Thai News Service reported.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has told the Ministries of Transport, Finance, Investment and Planning to make a comprehensive plan for the port to come up in Van Phong Bay.

The project's major investor, Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines), would work with the foreign partner on the details and secure the required licenses.

The project, approved in 2007, was almost mothballed early last year, with its groundbreaking ceremony cancelled, after Posco of the Republic of Korea and Khanh Hoa province proposed a US$10 billion steel plant and a 1,100 MW power plant in Dam Mon on part of the land earmarked for the port.

But at the end of last year, the Government disallowed their proposed projects on environmental grounds, effectively reviving the port project.

A study has found the 45,000-hectare bay's average water depth of 22 metres to 27 metres ideal for large vessels. It also has a natural barrier from the weather and tides in the form of Hon Gom island.

Economists have opined that if Van Phong becomes an international transit port, it would not only benefit Khanh Hoa immensely but also cause a major change to the Southeast Asian region's marine services industry.