The Tran De deep-sea port project, located in the former Soc Trang Province and now Can Tho City, is considered strategically important for the Mekong Delta. Once operational, the port is expected to address the region’s long-standing logistics bottlenecks, as most exports must currently be transported by road to ports in HCMC, significantly increasing costs.

While deep-sea ports have been developed along the country’s coastline from north to south, the Mekong Delta still has none, therefore, building a deep-water port is a long-standing aspiration of localities in the region.

“However, the question is the project’s economic efficiency,” said Doan Manh Thang, Director of Water & Planning at Haskoning Vietnam under Royal HaskoningDHV (Netherlands), at a media briefing on November 18.

He pointed to two major challenges that the Tran De deep-sea port must address during implementation.

First, Tran De is located in the former Soc Trang Province and sits at a river-mouth area of the Mekong Delta. Building a seaport close to the mainland is impossible due to the huge amount of alluvial accretion. Dredging the channel must be done frequently, but the natural depth is still insufficient for large ships to enter and exit.

Technically, Tran De port needs to be built about 16 km offshore. This means the investor must build a sea-crossing road of the same length from the mainland to the open sea. Only at that distance does the water reach the required depth and draft for large vessels.

Second, the initial investment cost is substantial. While the construction phases of Tran De could be divided to ease capital pressure, the surrounding breakwater system - the most expensive component - cannot be phased and must be built all at once.

"The total investment value must reach billions of USD for Can Tho City to own Tran De port," Thang said.

He noted that local authorities in the former Soc Trang and now Can Tho have invited private investors to study the project, but the cost of the sea-crossing route, breakwaters, and logistics infrastructure located 16km offshore is enormous, while cargo volumes remain limited. The financial feasibility remains questionable.

“Only when the Mekong Delta’s economy grows further and generates sufficient export volumes to attract large vessels will investors be drawn to the project,” he said.

Alternative option: Hon Khoai Port

In this context, instead of prioritizing the Tran De port, Haskoning suggests giving precedence to the Hon Khoai deep-sea port in Ca Mau. Under the Mekong Delta master plan, the region has two deep-sea ports: Tran De and Hon Khoai.

Hon Khoai’s advantage lies in its connectivity. The Government has invested in an expressway from HCMC to Ca Mau. A project on 18km sea-crossing bridge linking Ca Mau Cape and Hon Khoai has also been launched, with the construction starting in August 2025. Additionally, this area is not affected by siltation like Tran De and does not require frequent dredging.

“With these advantages, the development of Tran De should be slowed down, while Hon Khoai should be accelerated,” a Haskoning representative said.

On November 7, commenting on the Tran De port planning during group discussions on the draft amended Planning Law for 2021-2030, Finance Minister Nguyen Van Thang noted that cargo volume is a critical issue for consideration.

According to him, a large project like Tran De needs billions of dollars, possibly $2-3 billion, to be developed properly. Private investors only inject money into the project if they can see stable cargo sources to recover capital, while it is not yet clear now. This is why the project has long struggled to attract strategic investors.

In May 2025, the Ministry of Construction approved the “Detailed Plan for the Development of the Land and Water Areas of Soc Trang Seaport for 2021-2030, with Vision to 2050.”

Accordingly, total investment demand by 2030 is about VND61,513 billion, including VND19,607 billion for public maritime infrastructure and VND 41,906 billion for wharves (for cargo-handling services).

The Ministry prioritizes investments in public offshore infrastructure at Tran De, including navigation channels, breakwaters, and sea-crossing bridges, targeting a channel depth capable of receiving vessels of 100,000–160,000 tons by 2030.

Ha Nguyen