Vietnam has joined the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the maritime industry is one of the most vulnerable sectors as the market is open to foreign investors. The reporter of Vietnam Business Forum has interviewed Mr Duong Chi Dung, General Director of Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines).
Would you mind telling about preparatory steps taken by the Vietnamese maritime sector to sustain effective operations and restrain negative impacts?
Getting integrated into the international economy will provide a wider access to the Vietnamese maritime field for foreign firms, thus generating a stiff competition to gain the market share. However, Vinalines is holding advantages as it is operating in the “home market” where it could receive support and guidance from the Government ministries and branches and where it has experienced a business history for over 50 years. With the strong determination of more than 35,000 officers, seamen and staff of the corporation, we strongly believe that Vinalines will affirm its trademark on the international arena and hold a core role in the national maritime industry.
Vietnam now has a lot of seaports but most of them are of small sizes, hence, incapable of supporting large vessels. Which strategies will we employ to diversify the seaport system in order to receive large ships and create a corridor for the cargo exchange between Vietnam and the world?
The seaport system will continue being intensively invested in to increase its current capacity. We will invest in building new wharves in Dinh Vu Port (Hai Phong), Can Lan Port (Quang Ninh), Hiep Phuoc Port (Ho Chi Minh City), Cai Mep - Thi Vai (Ba Ria - Vung Tau) and constructing Ben Dinh, Vung Tau and Sao Mai container terminals to handle 50-55 million tonnes of incoming and outgoing cargo by 2010.
In the orientation to 2020, Vinalines will continue developing a modern and large-scale seaport system, studying abilities of mobilising domestic and foreign capital and building Van Phong International Port in Khanh Hoa Province, which will serve both regional and international container goods.
To become a leading maritime group, what should the Vietnamese maritime industry do to sharpen its competitiveness?
In order to give a face-lift to a dynamic and fast-growing Vinalines in the region and in the world, Vinalines always focuses on promoting international operations. To this point of time, Vinalines has entered a joint venture with SSA Group of US to develop the Cai Mep Container Port in Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province and build the Cai Lan Port in Quang Ninh Province. Vinalines has also joint-ventured with Maersk Group of Sweden and the PSA of Singapore to develop Thi Vai Port in Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province. The corporation also set up shipping service joint ventures with Japanese groups like K’lines, NYK and MOL. In addition, Vinalines also cooperated with STC Group of the Netherlands to train human resources for the maritime industry. Annually, many of Vinalines’ staff are sent to follow training courses in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Australia and other countries. Vinalines will open several branches and representative offices in several countries in the region and in the world to boost up the operation area of its ship fleet as well as its cooperative ties.
Could you tell us about the investment orientations of Vinalines?
We concentrated on investing in synchronous infrastructure construction for logistic services and maritime economic services in three national focal economic zones to sharpen the competitiveness and meet the integration requirements. Vinalines will invest in new shipping and stevedoring means, warehouse systems, cargo distribution centres, inland clearance depots (ICD) in industrial hubs and traffic convergences.
Depending on the capacity of the corporation and the demand of the market, Vinalines will invest in new business scopes such as finance, securities, insurance, logistics, ship-repairing, infrastructure development, real estate, production, and import-export of fuels, materials and equipment for the maritime industry.
Besides, Vinalines attaches much importance to the closely cooperative ties with the country’s top economic groups like Vietnam Oil and Gas Corp (PetroVietnam), Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group (Vinashin), Vietnam Insurance Group (Bao Viet) and Vietnam Coal and Mineral Industries (Vinacomin) to exploit the potentiality of the maritime economy.
Phuong Hiep
Vietnamese
