Nghe An becomes ideal integrated investment hub

Anchalee Prasertchand (right), director of the International Department at WHA Industrial Development, and Le Ngoc Hoa, Vice Chairman of Nghe An People's Committee

Nghe An has attracted 690 investment projects with the total registered capital of VND143 trillion ($6.2 billion) in the previous five years.

Cross-border connectivity, strong support from local leaders, and the province’s strategic geographical location are the key drivers which are turning Nghe An into a magnet for investment.

By virtue of its location, Nghe An has a ­coastline of 82 kilometres with convenient access to three deep seaports. The province also boasts an international airport, a railway station, good quality national highways, and four border gates to Laos.

The province provides also sufficient cross-border connectivity for investors to key markets in the region such as Laos, Thailand, and China.

In addition, Nghe An’s infrastructure and expressway network has been accelerated for competition. A new expressway is slated to be completed in 2022, along with a high-speed train and Vinh International Airport, which will further improve the regional links and establish the province as a major industrial hub of Vietnam.

Furthermore, Nghe An is attracting investors thanks to its abundant labour force. The province has a population of 3.2 million people, of which 1.9 million are of working age.

The constantly improving investment environment and preferential treatment such as special tax incentives at local industrial parks have paved the way for the stellar rise of investments in the province. In particular, investors will enjoy a tax reduction of 50 per cent in the first 15 years of operations and a 100 per cent tax exemption in the first four years.

Speaking at last week’s investment conference, Thai Thanh Quy, Chairman of Nghe An People’s Committee, said that the province has a lot of room for development, so it is expecting businesses to increase investment in the locality. Local leaders are committed to accompanying investors and valuing their success, thereby building up mutual trust.

Nguyen Huu Duc, general director of WHA Management Services Vietnam said, “With the rapidly expanding industrial sector in Vietnam and in the region, Nghe An is an ideal location for investors to start, run or grow their business. The area is dynamic and a strategic gateway to major markets such as China, South Korea, and Japan. It is quickly becoming an integrated hub of business, education, manufacturing, transportation, and logistics.”

According to Duc, WHA Industrial Zone 1-Nghe An is slated to be the largest ­industrial zone (IZ) in north central Vietnam. With 3,200 hectares upon completion, WHA Industrial Zone 1-Nghe An will be the perfect location for businesses to ­develop and increase their footprint.

WHA Industrial Development Plc., has over 30 years of experience in industrial estates development in Thailand is bringing decades of award-winning infrastructure and environmental experience. In Nghe An, the company draws on this ­experience gathered from its ­industrial estates, including Thailand’s Automotive Cluster and Petrochemical Complex, located in a major industrial hub in Southeast Asia.

Therefore, IZ development in Nghe An is representing an opportunity for manufacturers, distributors, and investors to grow in Vietnam and the Southeast Asian region as a whole.

“We can proudly and confidently assure all future ­investors of our high uncompromising industrial estate standards, dependable industrial utilities, and quality services,” Duc said. “We invite potential investors to visit WHA Industrial Zone 1-Nghe An, so they can see our sustainable, dependable, and environmentally-friendly industrial zone and a community that will foster prosperity and growth.”