Hoang Dinh Phi, deputy head of the Van Phong Economic Zone – where the port will come up – said an investment certificate had been issued for the 417-billion-dong (Bt655 million) first phase of the port.

The port, to come up on 42.21 hectares in Van Thanh Commune in Van Ninh district, can berth 50,000-ton vessels and handle 1.5 million to 2 million tonnes of cargo a year.

After 2020, the port will get two more terminals that can handle 1 million to 1.5 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) of cargo a year.

The work will be funded by internal resources (200 billion dong) and loans or sale of stakes (217 billion dong), according to Nha Trang Port JSC.

The company, which operates a tourist port in Nha Trang, is partly private, with conglomerate Vingroup owning nearly 35 per cent. |- Viet Nam News

Indonesia, EU to

discuss trade pact

Indonesian officials will discuss the initial phase of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU (CEPA) with its European partners during President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s visit next week, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong said.

The Indonesian government has 14 issues to discuss with the European Union, including non-tariff barriers as a priority topic.

“Once the scoping paper is finished, the next step is formal negotiations, possibly running for two years, then finalisation and ratification,” Thomas said after a press conference on Jokowi’s working visit to four European countries at the State Palace on Friday. |- The Jakarta Post