Three bidders have submitted proposals for the construction and equipment installation at the terminal of the mega Long Thanh airport project, according to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV).
The state-owned ACV, the main investor in the project, said it was evaluating the bids from firms in Vietnam, China, and Turkey, but the process could take a minimum 1.5 months. If everything goes smoothly, construction could start in September, it added.
The Long Thanh International Airport project in the southern province of Dong Nai is a mega project with a total investment of VND336.63 trillion ($14.12 billion), divided into three phases. The first phase, worth VND110 trillion, will consist of a runway, terminal and auxiliary facilities that can serve 25 million passengers per year. The project kicked off in 2021 and is expected to open in 2025.
The second phase is scheduled to be completed by 2050, increasing the capacity to 50 million passengers per year. The third phase will double the capacity to 100 million passengers a year.
The terminal is the largest package of the first phase, with an investment of VND35.23 trillion ($1.49 billion). It will take an expected 33 months to finish.
In September 2022, ACV first invited tenders for the Package No. 5.10 “Construction and Equipment Installation for the Passenger Terminal Building”. However, it only received one bid from a consortium of local firms: Coteccons, Vinaconex, Centra, Phuc Hung Holdings, REE, Hoa Binh Construction and Hawee. It then canceled the tender in mid-December as the bid did not meet the requirements.
In early May this year, ACV announced that the second bidding invitation for the package has been extended to June 12, 2023 instead of April 28.
In May 2023, Turkish private conglomerate IC Holding expressed an interest in the terminal package. The company said it had experience in implementing mega projects in foreign countries such as Russia and Saudi Arabia, and wanted to participate in more infrastructure projects in Vietnam, starting with Long Thanh.
Long Thanh airport is a project of national importance, according to the newly-approved national airport plan for 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050.