UK port businesses seek opportunities in Vietnam

British seaport businesses are ready to help Vietnam obtain breakthroughs in the industry and improve sea transport and management.

British Ambassador to Vietnam Mark Kent made this statement at the seminar, “UK-Vietnam Partnership in Ports” held in Hanoi Tuesday during a visit to Vietnam by a UK ports mission.

The seminar was held by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in Vietnam with the participation of nine leading businesses in UK port operations and development, provision of equipment and maritime services, and consultancies specialising in developing port infrastructure, coastal and offshore engineering and finance and education.

Representatives from UK businesses agreed that with over 3,200km of coastline and a strategic location in the region, Vietnam has huge potential for marine development.

Vietnam is attracting interest from international services and management companies who are seeking opportunities to develop markets involving ports and take part in projects to expand ports in Vietnam.

They said the UK, with its long and vast history in port development and operation and its strength in global markets, is well suited to assist Vietnam in this sector.

The UK has accumulated significant experience in port design and construction, providing marine safety, liquefied petroleum gas facilities, equipment, consultancy services, project management, training and financial, legal and logistical services.

Participants agreed that the UK, the world’s leading country in revamping and modernising port management, could help Vietnam create suitable solutions for management of its developing port facilities.

Addressing the seminar, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Hong Truong said that under the plan, from now till 2015, the Vietnamese government would give priority to developing the infrastructure at Van Phong deep-water port in central Khanh Hoa province and Lach Huyen international port in the northern city of Hai Phong.

The UK port mission is on a three-day visit to Vietnam from Monday to showcase the UK ’s expertise in the port sector with the aim of highlighting the success of the UK-Vietnam partnership in this key sector.

They visited ports and worked with relevant agencies and sectors to study the operations of Vietnamese ports and the nation’s port development strategy, and to seek cooperative partnerships and investment opportunities.

 

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UK port businesses seek opportunities in VN

British seaport businesses are ready to help Vietnam obtain
breakthroughs in the industry and improve sea transport and management.

British
Ambassador to Vietnam Mark Kent made this statement at the seminar,
“UK-Vietnam Partnership in Ports” held in Hanoi on Oct. 5 during a
visit to Vietnam by a UK ports mission.

The seminar was
held by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in Vietnam with the
participation of nine leading businesses in UK port operations and
development, provision of equipment and maritime services, and
consultancies specialising in developing port infrastructure, coastal
and offshore engineering and finance and education.

Representatives
from UK businesses agreed that with over 3,200km of coastline and a
strategic location in the region, Vietnam has huge potential for
marine development. Vietnam is attracting interest from international
services and management companies who are seeking opportunities to
develop markets involving ports and take part in projects to expand
ports in Vietnam.

They said the UK, with its long and vast
history in port development and operation and its strength in global
markets, is well suited to assist Vietnam in this sector.

The
UK has accumulated significant experience in port design and
construction, providing marine safety, liquefied petroleum gas
facilities, equipment, consultancy services, project management,
training and financial, legal and logistical services.

Participants
agreed that the UK, the world’s leading country in revamping and
modernising port management, could help Vietnam create suitable
solutions for management of its developing port facilities.

Addressing
the seminar, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Hong Truong said that
under the plan, from now till 2015, the Vietnamese government would give
priority to developing the infrastructure at Van Phong deep-water port
in central Khanh Hoa province and Lach Huyen international port in the
northern city of Hai Phong.

The UK port mission is on a
three-day visit to Vietnam from Oct. 4 to showcase the UK ’s
expertise in the port sector with the aim of highlighting the success of
the UK-Vietnam partnership in this key sector.

They visited
ports and worked with relevant agencies and sectors to study the
operations of Vietnamese ports and the nation’s port development
strategy, and to seek cooperative partnerships and investment
opportunities./.

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Ports, wharves to be made safer, cleaner

Goods being unloaded at Lotus Port on the Sai Gon River in HCM City. —VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Phan

HCM CITY — Managers of domestic ports and wharves in HCM City have committed to ensure safety, order and environmental hygiene, according to the Department of Transport's Domestic Waterway Division.

Ngo Dinh Quang, head of the division, said that drivers of boats and owners of ports and wharves had complied with waterway laws, especially storm and flood-prevention regulations, following a successful education campaign.

In addition, his office has offered training in waterway transport laws for owners of ports and wharves.

Despite the new effort to encourage compliance with regulations, the number of ports and wharves operating without a license has increased, up to 52 from 47 in 2009.

The fines for non-compliance are too low, according to Quang.

As part of its campaign, the waterway division said it had been working with People's Committees at the district level to organise forums and conferences with the participation of more than 40 companies that own ports and wharves.

The authority pledged that it would ensure procedures for issuing licences for domestic ports and wharves would adhere strictly to the law.

By the end of 2009, there were 268 ports and wharves operating, of which 47 worked without a licence.

Of the 221 ports and wharves operating with licenses, 44 of them have reached "model standards" set by the city's Transport Department, an increase of 65 per cent compared to 2008. — VNS

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Singapore keen on cruise ports

HCMC – Singapore tourism officials and entrepreneurs, after their fact-finding trips to some southern provinces early this month, have shown interest in cruise port development.

Saigon port in HCMC and An Thoi port on Phu Quoc Island off mainland Kien Giang Province are seen as suitable locations for developing ports of call for cruise ships, a local official quoted the Singapore delegates as saying.

Nguyen Anh Tuan, deputy head of the Travel Department of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said the delegates from Singapore Tourism Board, Royal Caribbean International, and KOP Group had toured ports in Ba Ria-Vung Tau, HCMC, Nha Trang (in central Vietnam) and Phu Quoc, and met with port developers there.

They said a number of operational ports in Ba Ria-Vung Tau were not fit for cruise vessels but Saigon Port and An Thoi were. “We’re not talking about a wharf for cruise ships but a hub for such vessels. That’s why they are interested in ports in HCMC and Phu Quoc,” he said.

According to him, the Singaporeans said Navi Oil and Lotus ports in District 7 of HCMC were not ideally located as it took visitors time to travel from there to the city center and tourist attractions. For An Thoi port, they suggested the local government reserve the current An Thoi fish port, then develop it into a fish market for tourists to see.

“The local government needs to care about just sanitation. It will become a unique site for tourists along with other landscapes on the island. An Thoi is also the suitable location for cruise ships active on international sea routes,” Tuan said.

He said the survey results would be presented at a meeting of the Vietnam-Singapore Tourism Cooperation Joint Committee late this year.

This is the second visit to Vietnam by the Singaporean tourism experts and businesspeople since the country’s tourism authority asked for support from Singapore as the region’s cruise hub.

Last year, Danang’s Tien Sa port was selected as the best location for cruise vessels in the region after the group toured seaports in Danang, Quang Nam and Thua Thien-Hue on the central coast. The two sides continued their cooperation after the trip with the signing of a deal between Vietnam’s Danang Port One-Member Limited Company and Singapore Cruise Center Pte Ltd.

International visitors to Vietnam by sea account for 5-6% of the total number of foreign arrivals in the country in 1997-2008, but the number is on the decline because large international cruise ships must anchor at cargo ports in Vietnam due to lack of port infrastructure.

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Relocation of city ports delayed

Cargo ships arrive at Sai Gon Port. The city's plan to relocate ports from the inner areas to outlying districts has been stalled because of the delayed infrastructure construction and a lack of funds. —VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Phan

HCM CITY — The removal of ports from the inner areas of HCM City to outlying districts has been stalled due to the delay in infrastructure construction at the proposed destinations as well as a lack of funds, port management officials say.

The city was to move four ports – Sai Gon, Sai Gon New, Vegetable Terminal and Tan Thuan Dong, as well as the Ba Son Shipyard by the end of this year in the initial phase of a plan to remove the port system out of inner HCM City.

But only one of them, the Sai Gon New Port, is about to complete its move from Binh Thanh District to Cat Lai.

According to Sai Gon Port Authority, the removal of other ports would be delayed by at least two years because the construction of wharves in the proposed destination in Nha Be District's Hiep Phuoc Port has not been completed.

The first 200m wharf for the Sai Gon Port will be put into use in September and another 600m wharf in 2012; while other proposed wharves with a total length of 1000m have not even completed the site clearance process.

Relocation of the Tan Thuan Dong Port in District 7 will take even longer, about 3-4 years, as its management needs to mobilize much more capital to afford the high cost of leasing land in the Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park.

The city has not allocated land for moving the Vegetable Terminal Port and its management has not prepared any plan for it.

The relocation of Ba Son Shipyard is awaiting capital from the new investors to meet real estate costs for transferring the land. Shipyard authorities said they were also waiting for approval from the HCM City People's Committee of plans submitted for new developments in the vacated area.

In July, the Government had issued a decision allowing the use of capital gained from selling land lots on the current location of the ports and the shipyard for the purpose of moving these facilities.

The ports and shipyards will also receive 30 per cent of their average annual after-tax income of the last three years to compensate for their loss of income during the relocation process.

A complex of financial offices and luxurious hotels will be developed on the site of the Ba Son Shipyard while historical buildings including the Ton Duc Thang memorial house will be retained.

The Nha Rong and Khanh Hoi wharves as well as the Sai Gon Port will become tourist ports connecting waterways with bus, taxi and metro terminals. — VNS

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