A ceremony marking the start of construction on the Phu QuocInternational Passenger Port was held on the island, which lies in theMekong Delta province of Kien Giang, on April 29.

Speaking at theopening ceremony, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang highlighted thesignificant role of the work in promoting local tourism developmentglobally.

The port will be built on 180 ha in the district’sDuong Dong town, with 2.8 ha allocated onshore for the passengerterminal and other buildings and 176.5 ha of water surface set to hold awharf, a breakwater and other necessary facilities.

Theproject will be carried out between 2015 and 2017 at a total cost ofover 1.64 trillion VND (76.4 million USD) under theBuilt-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, with 647 billion VND (30.1 millionUSD) to come from the local budget. The State budget will provide nearly477 billion VND (22.2 million USD) and the remainder will be sourcedfrom other sources.

The port will be designed to handle cruise liners carrying 5,000-6,000 visitors and 20,000-tonne cargo ships.

As one of the major infrastructure projects in the province, the PhuQuoc International Passenger Port is expected to stimulatesocio-economic development in the locality and the Mekong Delta ingeneral, especially in the field of tourism.

Phu Quoc, alsoknown as Pearl Island, is the largest island in Vietnam, with a totalarea of about 580 square kilometers. It has become well-known for itsstunning beaches, untouched natural environment, relaxed atmosphere,friendly and easygoing local people, and fantastic scuba diving andsnorkeling.-VNA