Chu Lai Open Economic Zone: Economic Leverage for Central Key Economic Zones

Established in 2003, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone is the first coastal economic zone in Vietnam. After eight years of construction and development, it has attained initial successes. The rapid development of the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone created a launch pad for Quang Nam province to confidently integrate with vibrant economic development of the country.

 

Currently, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone has a total area of 42,000 ha. Chosen to be a pioneer in building a centralised multi-sector economy, it advocates building ad developing synchronous modern infrastructure to lay a groundwork for attracting investment capital. Electrical, water, communications, wastewater treatment systems have been synchronously. In addition, the province is investing in important projects like Cua Dai bridge, a coastal road linking Hoi An Town to Chu Lai, a project dredging passageways from Buoy 0 to Ky Ha Port for vessels of 20,000 DWT and from Ky Ha Port to Tam Hiep Port for ships of 10,000 DWT. Especially, the Prime Minister agreed to add “Study on preparations for construction of Chu Lai International Airport” project sponsored by the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) to the list of official sponsorships. This is one of important driving infrastructure projects of Chu Lai Open Economic Zone, with a huge impact on attraction of investment capital in general and airport-surrounding projects. Together with infrastructure construction, the Economic Zone Management Board always attaches importance to investment attraction promotion.

 

Thus far, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone has a total of 72 licensed projects with a total registered investment capital of more than US$1.7 billion, including 18 FDI projects worth nearly US$200 million. Major investment projects include Chu Lai - Truong Hai automotive engineering industrial complex, truck factories, tourist sites, passenger car factories, parts manufacturing projects, supporting industries, Chu Lai floating glass factory, and Chu Lai soda factory.

 

Most enterprises in the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone are operating effectively, creating major industrial products, and participating in global value chains. In 2011, the industrial production value of the entire open economic zone exceeded VND1,851 billion, accounting for 14.74 percent of the province’s industrial production value; the  export value reached US$59 million, accounting for 17.61 percent of the province’s total; and total taxes were VND4,200 billion, accounting for 61.66 percent of the province’s total. In 2011, enterprises in the economic zone generated 1,200 jobs, bringing the total jobs here to more than 11,000. The State budget used in the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone is brought to the fullest. According to initial estimations, a unit of State-funded investment attracted 50 units of investment of enterprises and generated two units of annual tax. The economic zone received US$100 million of investment capital from the State Budget, attracted US$5,700 million of investment capital of enterprises, and paid VND3,500 billion.

 

Since its inception, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone is determined to become a firm fulcrum and leverage for the central region economic area and a driving force to accelerate the process of industrialisation and modernisation of the central region and the entire country, and form the close association with the Central Highlands region, Dung Quat Economic Zone, and regional countries like Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. According to the development strategy in the 2011 - 2015 period, with a vision to 2020, Chu Lai Open Economic Zone targets to account 38 percent of the province’s total industrial production value by 2015 and 50 percent by 2020, earn export value of US$100 million by 2015 and US$340 million by 2020, pay taxes of VND4,000 billion by 2015 and VND6,000 billion by 2020. To achieve these objectives, Quang Nam province advocates deploying seven groups of measures to the construction and development of Chu Lai Open Economic Zone towards 2020.