Mekong ports get $272m

Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta provinces are investing VND4.5 trillion (US$272.2 million) to upgrade river and sea ports. This is expected to increase cargo handling capacity to 18-20 million tonnes by 2010 and 30-35 milion tonnes in 2020.

The investment is being mobilised from many different sources from both within and outside the country.

Among the major ports, the first construction phase of the Cai Cui Seaport near Dinh An estuary and the Can Tho Bridge, has been completed. Its 9-ha wharf is capable of accomodating vessels with a freight capacity of 10,000 tonnes, and comes with a warehouse and container yard.

The seaport is now able to handle 650,000 tonnes of cargo a year. It is expected to receive container ships as big as 10,000-20,000 tonnes by 2013.

The Cai Cui Seaport will help the transport of commodities in the Hung Phu Industrial Park in Can Tho and provinces west of the Hau River, one of the two main tributaries of Mekong River.

Under the plan, Cai Cui, Tra Noc, and Hoang Dieu ports (all located in Can Tho) will become the delta’s main port cluster, capable of handling 7-8 million tonnes of cargo a year.

In the next two years, river ports in the Tien River basin, including Cao Lanh, Sa Dec (Dong Thap), My Tho (Tien Giang), Vinh Thai (Vinh Long) and Ham Luong (Ben Tre), will be upgraded to receive vessels of 5,000 tonnes.

These ports will handle 3.3-4.5 million tonnes of cargo a year by 2010, and 4.5-5 million tonnes by 2020.

In the Hau River basin, ports such as Can Tho, My Thoi (An Giang), Dai Ngai (Soc Trang), Tra Cu (Tra Vinh) and Binh Minh (Vinh Long) will aslo be expanded to handle 8.3-9.9 million tonnes a year by 2010 and 10-11 million tonnes a year by 2020.

Seaports in the Ca Mau peninsular and the Gulf of Thailand coastal areas will be outfitted to process 3-3.2 million tonnes of cargo a year.

According to port authorities, once work on modernising the Mekong River’s ports is done, the delta will save on transportation costs by $45 – $70 million a year by 2010.

The Ministry of Transport says its biggest challenge is that the main waterways at the Dinh An and Tieu estuaries of the Tien and Hau Rivers are currently blocked by thick layers of mud and soil deposits, hindering the passage of ships larger than 5,000 tonnes.

To address the problem, the ministry plans to use a 20 km section of the Quan Chanh Bo Canal in Tra Cu Distrit, Tra Vinh Province and dig a 9km canal to bypass the Dinh An waterway so that vessels can travel to the region’s main ports.

The ministry also intends to build two river dykes with a total length of 4km to prevent sea tides and mud deposits on both sides of the canal.

The two dykes, coupled with the dredging of the Dinh An waterway, will allow bigger vessels to enter ports near the Hau River. Total investment for this project is estimated at $200 million.

Can Tho City is now planning to build a transit port in the East Sea which is scheduled for completion by 2020 to allow 60,000-tonne ships to dock at port.

The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta’s waterways presently transport 10.5-12.5 million tonnes of goods a year. Due to poor sea and river transport infrastructure, 70 per cent of the cargo volume has to be transported via bigger ports in HCM City, which in turn has driven up transportation costs and reduced the competitiveness of local farm products in domestic and international markets. (VNS)