Accordingly, Khanh Hoa province has been allowed to select foreign consultants to develop a master plan for Bac Van Phong Special Economic Zone, which is a part of Van Phong Economic Zone. The province will have to allocate its local budget for the project.
Meanwhile, Bac Van Phong can enjoy numerous special privileges. In the Zone, favourable policies on tax and customs duties will be applied. The Zone can establish its financial institutions with specific monetary policies under the administration which should be suitable for the international practice.
Additionally, numerous land plots can now be rented for up to 99 years. The permitted period of exempting or decreasing land rent for some others is also more favourable than the current regulations.
Notably, PM has shown his dedication to establishing lean local authorities with only two levels in the special economic zones. This is expected to save time for administrative procedures and reduce unnecessary bureaucracy for people and enterprises.
The Government established Van Phong Economic Zone with the total area of 150,000 hectares, including 70,000 hectares of land surface, the rest is water surface of Ninh Hoa and Van Ninh districts in the northern part of Khanh Hoa province.
Van Phong Economic Zone has attracted about 145 investment projects, with a total registered capital of US$1.47 billion. Some major projects undergoing investment procedures include Van Phong Thermal Power Plant 1 (US$2 billion) of Sumitomo Corporation (Japan); Nam Van Phong Oil Refinery (US$4.8 billion) which is a joint venture between Petrolimex and Nippon Oil Energy (Japan).
