Prime Minister is dissatisfied with Long Thanh airport progress

An artist's impression of the Long Thanh International Airport in the southern Dong Nai Province. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Transport

After inspecting the construction site Sunday, PM Pham Minh Chinh expressed dissatisfaction and criticized a number of units for progress on Vietnam's largest airport Long Thanh, reported VN Express.

Chinh stated that according to the latest resolution of the National Assembly, the airport must be up for operation by 2025, but land clearance issues remain unresolved.

The project has been allocated capital for site clearance in 2021 and 2022, meaning Dong Nai Province People's Committee must take responsibility for handing over the entire site on time.

Up to now, the locality has handed over only 1,284 hectares, with 525 hectares outstanding.

Chinh acknowledged the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), the airport investor, is overseeing many airport projects, while resources, time, and experience are limited.

But he emphasized that ACV leaders must meet with Dong Nai officials and residents to quickly resolve current issues.

"Related agencies must clearly discuss current progress and divide responsibilities to speed up the project. Those who can do it must be determined and implement it; those who can't, stand aside," Chinh said.

The national key project deserves better coordination and management, he said, urging units to prevent corruption in bidding and other tasks in the project.

The Long Thanh airport project has a capital of about $5 billion, with many component initiatives.

Long Thanh, set to replace Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport as Vietnam’s largest when completed, will have an annual capacity of one hundred million passengers and five million tons of cargo.

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