The 1,200-MW factory is the first project to be carried out under the form of build-operate-own (BOO) in the country with a permitted operation duration of 50 years, said Nguyen Xuan Doan, head of the external economic affairs office of the provincial Department of Planning and Investment.

The project was previously given the go-ahead by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and then approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Once licensed, it will be kicked off next year and put into operation in 2015.

Malaysia topped the list of 40 countries and territories that have invested in Vietnam in the first nine months of this year, with 37 projects worth 14.8 billion USD, accounting for 4.1 percent of the total number of projects and 26.4 percent of the registered capital in the country.

Projects of note include a 9.8 billion USD steel complex jointly funded by the Lion Group and the Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group in the central province of Ninh Thuan and a 3.5 billion project to develop urban centres and universities in Ho Chi Minh City.