The proposed Long Thành International Airport near HCM City will be in the shape of a lotus flower. — VNS Photo

A lotus flower design has been chosen for the terminal of the proposed Long Thanh International Airport in Dong Nai Province near HCM City.

It was announced after a meeting between the Ministry of Transport led by transport minister Truong Quang Nghia and the Airport Corporation of Viet Nam (ACV) on Wednesday.

According to the chairman of the ACV, Lai Xuan Thanh, the ministry had collected public opinion on the design of the terminal in Ha Noi, HCM City, Da Nang, and Dong Nai and also from professional associations in the country.

He revealed that 26 members of the consultative group, or almost 60 per cent, chose the lotus design.

The design had been proposed by Korean company Heerim Architects & Planners Co Ltd, and short listed along with two others by the ACV following public displays of all designs.

The others were designed by a Viet Nam-Japan-Singapore consortium and a Japan-France joint venture.

The ACV would hold discussions with the consultative group to make improvements to the design, Thanh said.

The airport is expected to cost US$16.03 billion.

It will have a capacity of 100 million passengers and five million tonnes of cargo a year when completed in 2025.

The current international airport, Tan Son Nhat in HCM City, is bursting at the seams after exceeding its capacity much earlier than expected. — VNS