Kim Long Nam JSC has received approval in principle from the People’s Committee of Thua Thien – Hue to develop an auto manufacturing – assembly complex in the Chan May – Lang Co Economic Zone.

The Kim Long Motors Hue complex spans approximately 160ha, with its first phase costing some VND3.33 trillion (US$143 million). It is designed to annually produce 16,000 buses meeting Euro emission standards and is slated for completion in 24 months.

Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Phan Ngoc Tho said the project was in line with the national strategy for auto industry development.

The plant would make use of the province’s port and logistical advantages and help attract more investors to the local spare parts and mechanical industries, he said, adding that it would create jobs for some 3,000 local workers.

Tho said he hoped the Kim Long Motors Hue and Truong Hai – Chu Lai complexes would form an auto manufacturing centre in the key central economic region, which consists of Thua Thien – Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh.

The Industrial Policies Strategies Institute (IPSI) under the Ministry of Trade and Industry predicted the Vietnamese automobile market would develop strongly between now and 2035 as the country was experiencing a “golden population structure”, which offered opportunities to promote the automobile industry.

The market was expected to reach 750,000-800,000 units by 2025 and 1.7-1.85 million units by 2035, the IPSI said, attributing its prediction to population size, income per head and average number of cars per 1,000 people. — VNS