Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc expressed his hope that Vingroup will contribute to the development of the domestic automobile sector with the establishment of its VinFast automobile and electric motorbike manufacturing complex.

During his field trip to the complex located at the Dinh Vu - Cat Hai industrial park in the northern port city of Hai Phong yesterday, the PM said Vingroup’s auto production will help build a self-controlled economy for the country. Building a self-controlled economy is an important orientation set by the Party and the State, the leader stressed, saying he hopes that Vingroup will reap successes in this field as the conglomerate is on the right track.

He lauded the group for breakthroughs it has made during the implementation of the project. Vingroup is expected to make public the first electronic motorbikes in September 2018. Meanwhile, its SUV and Sedan automobiles are scheduled to be introduced to the market in the second quarter of 2019. VinFast is expected to heat up the local market with electric automobiles by the end of 2019.

PM Phuc also applauded VinFast’s efforts to build an ecological system for the domestic auto manufacturing sector by zoning off 70 hectares of land for a support industry area to attract factories specialising in producing spare parts, as well as its contributions to training Vietnamese workers. Eight companies have signed contracts with VinFast to set up factories in the area, with four of them invested by VinFast. Covering a total area of 335ha, VinFast is projected to be put into operation in June 2018. VinFast has negotiated and signed agreements with the world’s leading companies to provide it with production lines, equipment and machines.

Also yesterday, PM Phuc visited the construction site of Aeon Mall in Le Chan district of Hai Phong. Covering about 93,000 sq.m, the project is expected to open in 2020 and attract more than 13 million visitors each year from Hai Phong and nearby Quang Ninh, Hai Duong and Thai Binh provinces.

This is the sixth Aeon Mall in Viet Nam and the third of its kind in the northern region.

When coming into operation, Aeon Mall Hai Phong Le Chan is expected to attract more than 13 million customers per year from Hai Phong City and neighbouring areas such as Quang Ninh, Hai Duong and Thai Binh.

The mall will not only serve shoppers but will also be a multi-functional complex which will create an exciting environment for social and cultural exchange for customers with many entertainment and educational facilities.

In addition, with the commencement of Nguyen Van Linh Overpass under Ho Sen – Cau Rao 2 Project, the Aeon Mall will play an important role in improving the infrastructure of the area, contributing to the new look of Le Chan District.

As the sixth commercial centre of Aeon Mall in Viet Nam, it will follow the consistent design of environment-friendly space, large parking area and innovating customer shopping experience with wide range of business categories, convenient facilities and exciting entertainment on the floor area of 279,000sq.m, said general director of Aeon Mall Vietnam Company, Yasutsugu Iwamura.

The same day, the Government leader also attended the inauguration of the Hai Phong International Container Terminal (HICT), a joint venture of the Saigon NewPort Corporation, the Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Co. Ltd of Japan, the Wan Hai Lines company of Taiwan (China), and Itochu Corporation of Japan.

HICT, located in Cat Hai town of Cat Hai district, is the first deep-water port in the northern key economic region of Viet Nam. It is able to accommodate container ships of 14,000 TEUs and general cargo ships of 160,000 DWT, helping export-import goods of the northern region be directly shipped to Europe or America by parent vessels instead of being transited to another port like in the past. The terminal is set to handle goods equivalent to 1.1 million TEUs each year. – VNS