Thanh Hoa proposes building new terminal at Tho Xuan airport hinh anh 1At the Tho Xuan airport (Photo: laodong.vn)
Hanoi (VNA) – The People’s Committee of the north central province of Thanh Hoa has submitted an official dispatch to the Ministry of Transport regarding the investment of the T2 passenger terminal and other infrastructure at the local Tho Xuan airport.

Per the official document, the province asked the Ministry of Transport to consider attracting capable businesses and investors or arrange other lawful capital sources from the state budget for the construction of the terminal and infrastructure in the 2022-2025 period.

Earlier, the locality received a notice from the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), which is managing and operating the Tho Xuan airport. The report said the investment project worth some 2.12 trillion VND (90.83 million USD) is not included in its medium-term public investment plan for the 2021-2025 period, but has been earmarked for investment after 2025. According to the project, the T2 terminal is designed to be capable of serving 5 million passengers a year.

The Ministry of Transport’s Decision No. 1136/QĐ-BGTVT dated June 12, 2020, approved a plan for the airport for the 2021 – 2030 period with a vision to 2050. The plan stipulated that the 10-year period will see the expansion and upgrade of the existing passenger terminal T1, and the construction of the T2 and a cargo terminal, with a handling capacity of 27,000 tonnes per year.  

Currently, terminal T1 is overloaded as it struggles to handle domestic routes. The terminal is not designed to handle international routes as there is no isolation area for international arrivals, entry, exit, or customs management areas.

Investment in building the T2 terminal and other infrastructure as approved for the 2021-2025 period is timely to help the Tho Xuan airport to develop, said the provincial People’s Committee. 

The Tho Xuan airport was put into operation on February 5, 2013. Its average number of passengers in the 2013 - 2015 period soared by 160% annually.

The T1 terminal was opened in January 2016, capable of handling 1.2 million passengers a year. In the 2016 - 2020 period, the airport’s passenger throughput grew by 17% on an annual average. In the first five months of 2022, the terminal received 671,000 arrivals, projected to hit 1.4 million by year’s end.

Thanh Hoa is seen as a hidden gem in Vietnam, with huge potential for developing tourism on the back of its diverse and rich tourism resources.

Known as a "miniature Vietnam", Thanh Hoa is host to all of the country’s terrains, from mountain, midland, to plain and coast, with many beautiful landscapes and valuable historical – cultural vestiges. The province also has a system of infrastructure and technical facilities for tourism that is constantly expanding, and gradually improving in quality.

Thanh Hoa is home to a variety of beautiful beaches, namely the popular Sam Son brown sand beach in the city of the same name. There is also Hai Tien beach in Hoang Hoa district, Tien Trang Quang Xuong beach in Quang Xuong district, and Hai Hoa, Hai Thanh, and the Bai Dong beach in Tinh Gia district.

In recent years, the province has become one of the top cities and provinces in terms of tourism growth nationwide. During the 2016-2019 period, the number of tourist arrivals in the province grew by 15.2% annually. Tourism revenue rose by 31.7% year on year, contributing greatly to local socio-economic development.

With cases declining and COVID-19 under relative control for now, Thanh Hoa tourism is bustling again with the reopening of all tourist destinations. The province has an image as a safe, friendly and attractive destination, highlights prompting visitors to travel to the locality./.
VNA