Council formed to appraise investment proposals for Cai Mep Ha downstream port complex in HCMC

A state appraisal council will be established to review investment proposals for the Cai Mep Ha downstream port complex project in Ho Chi Minh City, under a decision recently signed by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha.

The complex includes a logistics center and zones for industrial, urban, and service functions, the government’s news portal reported.

It is located in former Ba Ria-Vung Tau province. HCMC, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, and Binh Duong on July 1 merged to form the new HCMC.

According to the decision dated July 24, 2025, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang is council chairman, while a deputy minister takes on the role of vice chairman.

Council members include leaders from the ministries of construction; national defense; public security; industry and trade; agriculture and environment; science and technology; culture, sports and tourism; and justice, as well as representatives from the HCMC People’s Committee.

The Ministry of Finance is the council’s standing body.

Council members are responsible for providing feedback within the timeframe requested by the council’s standing body. Failure to respond by the deadline will be considered as agreement with the contents submitted for consultation, and the members will bear full responsibility for the response delay.

The council is tasked with finalizing the appraisal report in accordance with regulations, clearly stating that the project dossier meets the conditions for government approval and submission to the National Assembly - Vietnam’s legislature - for investment policy endorsement.

The decision requires agencies with representatives on the council to issue a written nomination and submit it to the standing body no later than July 26, 2025.

The council will automatically dissolve upon completion of its mandate.

The seaport system in HCMC is primarily concentrated in the Cai Mep-Thi Vai area, currently regarded as the most advanced port network in Vietnam, the news portal said.

This hub is home to major international container terminals such as Gemalink, CMIT, TCIT, SP-PSA, and SITV, featuring modern and synchronized infrastructure, fast vessel turnaround times, and the capability to handle vessels of up to 250,000 DWT - a capacity matched by only a few ports across Asia.

The Cai Mep-Thi Vai deep-water port cluster serves as a strategic export gateway for the entire Southeast region, particularly as HCMC’s port infrastructure approaches capacity limits.

The cluster ranked seventh globally in the Container Port Performance Index (CPPI), outperforming renowned transshipment hubs such as Yokohama (Japan), Hong Kong (China), and Singapore, according to a 2024 report by the World Bank and S&P Global.

On May 17, SSIT (SP-SSA International Terminal) successfully welcomed the Zim Wilmington of the “Lone Star Express/ZSL” service, which is operated by Switzerland-headquartered Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and Israel’ ZIM (ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd.).

The service directly connects cargo flow from Vietnam and East Asia with U.S. East Coast ports and Singapore, SSIT said on its website.

Notably, the cluster is the only Vietnamese port involved in the Gemini Cooperation alliance formed between two major shipping lines, Denmark-based Maersk and Germany's Hapag-Lloyd.

Currently, it handles up to 48 international container shipping routes per week, an increase of 11 routes compared to the previous year.