Oct. 16 – Vietnam has begun construction of the Cai Mep-Thi Vai International Port Complex located in the southern coastal province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

Once completed, the port complex will be equipped with a container port section, in addition to two berths with a capacity of 80,000-DWT container ships and a total handling capacity of 700,000 twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEU) annually.

The general goods port section will have two berths that can handle 50,000 DWT ships and accomodate 1.6 to 2 million tons of cargo per year.

The deep-water port complex's area will span almost 80 hectares with an estimated total cost of VND11.47 trillion funded by loans from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation.

The port is set for completing by 2012 and should ease congestion at southern ports including Ho Chi Minh City.