Da Nang (VNA) – Da Nang plans to turn Lien Chieu Port in🅠to a major cargo port in the central region and the East-West Economic Corridor No 2 connecting Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam with total investment of 3 trillion VND (133.3 million USD).

Lien Chieu Port, which currently handles 50,000 deadweight tonnage (DWT) container ships, will be built to allow access to 100,000-tonne ships and cargo ship with loading capacity of 8,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEUs). Vice chairman of the central city’s Nguyen Ngoc Tuan said the construction of the Lien Chieu Port will ease congestion at the overloaded Tien Sa Port. Tuan also asked Ministry of Transport to start construction of the port in 2020 for operation in 2025 when Tien Sa Port reaches its capacity of handling 11 million tonnes of cargo. He said the deep-sea Lien Chieu Port is eligible for connection with railway and road systems from the East-West Economic Corridor No 2 (EWEC2). Tuan said Tien Sa Port, which serves both cargo and cruise ships, will gradually be cruise port with an anticipated capacity of 250,000 tourists in 2030. According to the Ministry of Transport, Tien Sa port is designed for hosting 50,000 DWT container ships and 225,000 Gross Tonneage (GRT) cruise ships. The central city also plans to upgrade Son Tra Port for 20,000DWT ships and build up an Inland Container Deport (ICD) to support ports in Da Nang and Chan May Port in neighbouring Thua Thien-Hue Province. A survey from the Ministry of Transport revealed that Da Nang, which is situated at the end of EWEC, would handle 29 million tonnes of cargo by 2030. The central city’s port system including Tien Sa, Lien Chieu and Son Tra has been planned as the biggest integrated port among six seaports in Vietnam (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue, Ky Ha, Dung Quat and Da Nang). Last year, Da Nang’s ports handled a record 6.5 million tonnes of cargo, and hosted nearly 120,000 tourists disembarking from cruises. According to Vietnam’s seaport system development plan to 2020, Da Nang Port has been confirmed as a major commercial port in the region, making it one of the key gateways to the East Sea from the sub-Mekong region.-VNA