$1.5 bln airport city project linked to Gia Binh airport gets okayed

Authorities in Vietnam’s northern province of Bac Ninh has approved a nearly VND39.52 trillion ($1.51 billion) urban development project adjacent to the planned Gia Binh International Airport, as authorities move to build a new aviation and logistics hub east of Hanoi.

The provincial People’s Committee on Saturday approved the investment plan and selected Thai Bao Real Estate and Infrastructure Development JSC as the investor for the Gia Binh International Airport urban area 1 project.

The project will cover about 200.8 hectares in Gia Binh, Dai Lai, and Dong Cuu communes, and it is designed as a smart, environmentally friendly urban area with integrated residential, commercial, tourism, and social infrastructure.

The project is expected to accommodate around 35,637 residents and operate for 50 years from the date of investor approval. Construction will be carried out in two phases, with the first covering approximately 106.8 hectares and the second spanning about 94 hectares.

Both phases will include integrated technical and social infrastructure, low-rise, and high-rise housing, mixed-use developments, commercial and service facilities, schools, healthcare centers, sports facilities, parking areas, and other public amenities.

The project will also feature educational institutions at all levels, from kindergarten to high school, and a combined hospital and elderly care facility with 300-500 beds.

Provincial authorities have instructed relevant agencies to complete subsequent procedures and incorporate the project into Bac Ninh’s housing development plan for 2026-2030.

Separately, Bac Ninh is preparing a master plan for the Gia Binh International Airport urban area 2, a larger 560-hectare development in Gia Binh, Nhan Thang, and Dong Cuu communes, designed to accommodate 70,000-80,000 residents.

The province has also approved Thai Bao Infrastructure and Real Estate Development JSC to prepare a feasibility study for a direct road connecting to Gia Binh International Airport under a build-transfer (BT) model. The proposed road will be approximately 13.3 km long, running through Lam Thao, Gia Binh, and Luong Tai communes.

The project is expected to require around 80 hectares of land, including about 54 hectares of agricultural land and seven hectares of residential land subject to site clearance.

The road will be the second major transport link serving Gia Binh airport. Previously, a consortium comprising Cong Thanh Transport Construction and Investment JSC and Sun Group’s Cam Pha Sun LLC was selected to develop another road connecting the airport to Hanoi.

Under Vietnam’s national airport development plan, Gia Binh is designated as a 4E international airport with capacity of about 30 million passengers annually by 2030, rising to around 50 million passengers by 2050.

The airport is planned to occupy approximately 1,960 hectares and will be capable of handling large fixed-wing aircraft used for state and diplomatic flights carrying Vietnamese leaders and foreign heads of state.