DP World opens Saigon

Celebrations on Saturday marked the official opening of DP World-operated Saigon Premier Container Terminal (SPCT) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Attending the event were DP World Chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Hồ Nghĩa Dũng, Minister of Transportation, Lê Hoàng Quân, Chairman of HCMC People’s Committee and Phan Hong Quan, General Director of Tan Thuan Industrial Promotion Company, SPCT’s joint venture partner IPC a state-owned enterprise; as well as 700 other senior officials and dignitaries.

The DP World-operated container terminal, which is located along the western shore of the Soai Rap River on 23 hectares in the Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park, is a state of the art facility which began operations in October 2009, just two years after construction began in September 2007. At the height of construction more than 1,500 local workers were deployed on site.

Phase one of the development has two berths and storage capacity for up to 15,000 TEU at a time, including 650 refrigerated container slots.

The continued development of the infrastructure by government authorities includes dredging of the Saoi Rap river to a depth of 9.5 metres, allowing SPCT to serve vessels with a nominal capacity of up to 5,000 TEU close to the city. DP World will then be able to serve both the intra-Asia market and deep sea trades.

Additional dredging a depth of 12 metres is planned for the near future, when SPCT will be able to handle vessels up to 8,000 TEU, further reducing costs for Vietnamese exporters and importers

“We congratulate the Vietnamese Government and the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City on their vision, and thank them sincerely for their commitment to building the infrastructure upon which the new industrial zone depends – notably roads, bridges, and especially the waterway access via a deepened Soai Rap River,” said DP World Chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem.

“I have visited Vietnam on many occasions and have been deeply impressed with the vibrancy and energy of this great country, and of Ho Chi Minh City in particular. It therefore comes as no surprise to me that HCMC achieved growth in container traffic of 2 per cent during last year’s unprecedented recession in World shipping.  

‘This reinforces our confidence in the potential for this beautiful country. We believe that with the right port facilities, further rapid expansion of international trade is not just possible but probable, to the benefit of both Vietnam and its trading partners.”

Currently five shipping lines have multiple weekly calls at the new facility.