Shipyards, oil refinery projects in Vungtau city and Long Son island

Singapore port firm PSA gets Vietnam license

PSA International, the world's biggest ports company, has been granted an investment licence to develop a new container port in Vietnam's southern Vung Tau province, the Singapore state-owned firm said Saturday.

The license was given to SP-PSA International Port Co. Ltd. (SP-PSA), a joint venture between Saigon Port and PSA Vietnam Pte Ltd.

This would be PSA's first port project in Vietnam, a statement from the joint venture partners said. It did not give any financial details.

The port will be located near the mouth of the Cai Mep-Thi Vai river and be equipped to handle large vessels at its deep water berths. It will be connected by a road and inland waterway network to Ho Chi Minh City.

"Saigon Port plays an important role in furthering the growth and development of its hinterland, which includes Ho Chi Minh City and its adjacent provinces through its pro-active development of port facilities," said Le Cong Minh, chairman of SP-PSA and general director of Saigon Port.

The terminal will be developed in two phases, with the first phase becoming operational in 2009. When both phases come on-stream, the terminal will have a projected annual capacity of 2 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), the statement said.

PSA runs Singapore's container terminals, the world's busiest, as well as ports in Belgium, China, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Korea and Thailand.

Source: Reuters, Bloomberg