State-run Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) has proposed investing nearly VND4 trillion to build two piers at Lien Chieu Port in the central coast city of Danang.

An artist's impression of Lien Chieu Port in the coastal central city of Danang - PHOTO: MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT

The three-phase project to develop Lien Chieu Port, under a private-public partnership, will cost a total of VND32.86 trillion, covering more than 240 hectares of land, VietnamPlus reported.

In the first phase, the port is set to accommodate vessels of 100,000 DWT and container ships of 6,000 to 8,000 twenty-foot-equivalent units, allowing for annual cargo throughput of some 17 million tons by 2022. The first phase would need total funding of over VND7.3 trillion, with the State funding VND3.4 trillion and private investors the rest.

The construction of Lien Chieu Port, as explained by Vinalines, is urgently needed.

The project, once completed, will help ease freight transport, which is on the rise, and ensure the sustainable socioeconomic growth of the city and the central region as a whole. In addition, the project will share the workload with Tien Sa and Son Tra wharves, while easing road traffic congestion in the city center.

In particular, Danang Port JSC, a subsidiary of Vinalines and the main investor in the Tien Sa Port project’s second phase, has put Tien Sa Port into commercial service since June. However, the port is restricted from handling cargo heavier than 10 tons transported by road and will be reserved to serve as a tourist port in the coming days, which will affect the port’s revenues.

Further, Danang Port firm, a State-run unit, will remain the main investor in the Lien Chieu Port project and is expected to run it more efficiently than other investors. Moreover, the firm will be able to minimize possible conflicts in terms of investment and operation activities between Tien Sa and Lien Chieu ports, according to Vinalines’ leader.

Earlier, the municipal government completed the project’s prefeasibility study. The city also published a roadmap for the project, with the investment preparation period lasting from now until next year. The project will then be executed and begin operations in the 2020-2022 period.

SGT