The province told a conference in HCMC on Tuesday (5 May 2009) that it needed huge funds for developing ports, roads, bridges, power supply systems and infrastructure to facilitate the development of the newly established Dinh An economic zone and industrial zones.

There are 25 projects awaiting investors, including the Dinh An Economic Zone, a US$312 million new urban area, a US$200 million bridge, a tra and basa catfish processing plant worth US$44 million and a US$12.5 million resort.

Dinh An Economic Zone, of which the establishment was approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung last week, encompasses Tra Cu and Duyen Hai districts with a total area of nearly 40,000 hectares. It will be home to the marine, tourism and port sectors; a port logistics-related, customs-free area; and an urban residential complex.

The project will be developed on 15,000 hectares in the first phase, which includes a fairway for large vessels to enter the Hau River. US$1 billion will be needed for this economic zone, which is the second in the Mekong Delta after the one in Ca Mau Province and the 15th in the country.

Tra Vinh offers special incentives for investment in fields such as technical infrastructure for industrial parks or clusters, and economic zones, development of highly competitive industries, and processing export goods using local raw materials, said Huynh Van Tao, director of the province’s Department of Planning and Investment.

The province will guarantee sufficient infrastructure in industrial parks and clusters, and fish ports, such as roads, power grid and water supply to each factory, he said. The province will be responsible for site clearance and compensation and coordinate major infrastructure works.

Tra Vinh also has three industrial zones and one economic zone, provincial chairman Tran Hoang Kim said. “The provincial authorities are committed to creating more favorable conditions and policies for investors in Tra Vinh.” Tra Vinh will support investors with personnel training, land leasing, infrastructure construction, technology transfer and trade promotion, he noted.

By 2010, a number of major state-funded projects will be developed in the province, such as Quan Chanh Bo Canal for transport of commercial and export goods in the Mekong Delta, the 4,400 MW Duyen Hai thermo-power complex, according to Tra Vinh.

Some other projects are under way as well, especially the upgrade and widening of national highways 53, 54 and 60, and the construction of Co Chien and Dai Ngai bridges.

At the conference, Saigon Co.op, the owner of the country’s leading Co.opMart store chain, and Vietnam Fashion Company, the owner the Vinatex Mart chain, signed investment cooperation contracts with Tra Vinh leaders to set up commercial centers in the province.