Vietnam prioritizes smart, green seaport projects: Deputy PM

Vietnam encourages smart and green seaport investments, as technical barriers related to CO2 emissions and CO2 taxes begin to be tightened up globally.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha made the statement at a Tuesday meeting in Hanoi with Rodolphe Saade, chairman and CEO of France's CMA CGM - a world's leading shipping firm.

"CMA CGM, with its capacity, experience and international reputation, should invest in projects that develop smart and green seaports, with infrastructure suitable for the transition to green fuel sources and renewable energy, effectively exploiting the potential of coastal and inland waterway transport," he said.

"Investing in smart and green seaports will create new competitive advantages for businesses like CMA-CGM when technical barriers related to CO2 emissions and CO2 taxes begin to be tightened up globally," Ha added.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that Asia and Southeast Asia are becoming vibrant production centers, leading to increasing demand for freight transport.

In that context, CMA CGM's investments in Vietnam's seaport infrastructure are in line with the country's orientation of developing a sea-based economy, with the development of modern seaport infrastructure as a prerequisite condition.

The cabinet leader said that Vietnam has planned a national seaport system with the goal of building green shipbuilding facilities and seaports, together with a regional-scale maritime transport fleet.

Some seaports such as Cai Mep-Thi Vai (Ba Ria-Vung Tau province), Can Gio (Ho Chi Minh City), Lien Chieu (Da Nang city), and Ca Mau (Ca Mau province) have been planned to become international transit ports, leveraging their favorable locations that connect with global shipping routes.

Many deep-water seaports in the central region that have been newly established or have just been put into operation still have great potential to be further exploited, Ha noted.

Vietnam is also planning a network of seaports to serve the needs of socio-economic development in individual regions such as Tran De port (Soc Trang province) and Can Tho port (Can Tho province), both in the Mekong Delta.

"The government is implementing many key transport infrastructure projects to connect multimodally with the seaport system such as expressways and high-speed railways, improving the competitiveness of Vietnam's seaports and shipping fleets," said the Deputy PM.

Ha stressed he hopes that enterprises, including CMA CGM, will promptly make recommendations to the government, ministries, and other state agencies to resolve difficulties and obstacles that limit the space for innovation and development of enterprises.

Referring to the electric barge project that CMA CGM will deploy in Vietnam, the cabinet leader emphasized that the government encourages enterprises to develop towards forming a comprehensive value chain - from research, technology transfer and supporting industry production to manufacturing equipment and vehicles for logistics infrastructure and maritime transport.

In response, Rodolphe Saade said that CMA CGM wishes to promote Vietnam's maritime services on the global stage, partly by leveraging the country's export advantages.

Saade informed that CMA CGM is accelerating a project to deploy electric barges, first on inland waterways in Vietnam, to exploit the maximum efficiency of multimodal transport including seaways, inland waterways, roads, and railways.

The company wishes to continue expanding its investment and presence in Vietnam, he added.

CMA CGM recently signed a partnership agreement with Vietnam's Saigon Newport Corporation (SNP) to develop a deep-water terminal in Hai Phong city, northern Vietnam.

The agreement covers the design, construction, and operation of the Lach Huyen 7&8 terminal, located in the strategically positioned Lach Huyen area, CMA CGM wrote in a release on Monday.

The terminal will have a capacity of 1.9 million TEUs and is scheduled to open in 2028, "strengthening its strategic presence in Vietnam".

The project, with total investment capital of $600 million, is designed to meet the sharp increase in container volumes in northern Vietnam, one of Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing economic zones.

CMA CGM currently has more than 500 ships, with a total capacity of 3 million TEUs. The ships are equipped with latest technologies in safety and environmental protection and present in 160 countries with nearly 300 shipping routes.

The French giant owns a logistics chain providing road, inland waterway, rail transportation and logistics services, which is capable of meeting the requirements of customers worldwide.

CMA CGM has four shipping lines operating in Vietnam (CMA-CMG, APL, ANL, and CNL) and one logistics company (CEVA) serving six ports: Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Quy Nhon and Chu Lai.