Itochu seeks opportunities in central Vietnam ports, logistics

Japanese giants Itochu and Yoshida Kaiun Group are eyeing investment opportunities in ports, logistics and industrial real estate in Chan May-Lang Co Economic Zone.

At a meeting with Thua Thien-Hue province’s leaders on Wednesday, Pham Bich Hue, Chairman of Western Pacific JSC, said the Japanese duo want to be the Vietnamese company’s strategic partners in search for opportunities in port, logistics and industrial complex development.

In response, Thua Thien-Hue Chairman Nguyen Van Phuong said the central province aims to develop Chan May-Lang Co sustainably as an important driving force of the central region’s economy. “Infrastructure, ports, industrial parks, non-tariff areas, high-tech industrial parks and urban complexes are major projects,” he added.

Itochu, one of Japan’s largest corporations, has portfolios in trade, energy, textiles, machinery, metals, chemicals, food, real estate, information technology, communications and finance, with 120 subsidiaries in 63 countries.

In Vietnam, the heavyweight is a major shareholder of Vinatex, Vietnam’s biggest garment maker, with 13% ownership, and owns 45% of Phuong Dong Biofuel Co. Itochu is cooperating with about 100 Vietnamese textile and garment companies in diverse areas, from supply of raw materials to trade of fashion goods.

Yoshida Kaiun is one of Japan’s leading logistics groups, with 15 subsidiaries involving logistics and manufacturing.

In 2021, Western Pacific JSC, Yoshida Kaiun Group and another Japanese corporation signed a cooperation agreement to build and operate a high-rise smart logistics center at Yen Phong II-A Industrial Park in Bac Ninh province, northern Vietnam.

Covering an area of 27,108 ha, Chan May-Lang Co Economic Zone is located between two major cities Hue and Da Nang. The zone is 45 km from Phu Bai International Airport in the north and 30 km from Da Nang International Airport in the south.

The North-South railway system and the National Highway 1A go through the zone. Its deep sea port Chan May is the gateway linking the countries in the East-West Economic Corridor, including Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, with East Asian countries and the world.

The zone includes a non-tariff zone (1,080 ha), a port zone (including water surface, almost 687 ha), an industrial and hi-tech zone (1,915 ha), an urban zone (nearly 2,197 ha), and a tourism zone (3,250 ha).