Infrastructure is not yet available
Every day, La Lay International Border Gate receives about 4,000 tons of coal, at times reaching a peak of 12,000 tons with about 500 vehicles passing through. In 2023 alone, Quang Tri imported 2.2 million tons of coal from Laos, bringing a large source of revenue to Quang Tri province in the context of limited budget revenue from other sources.
However, the reality is that the area of the border gate between Vietnam and Laos is not large. There is no cargo staging area, the infrastructure is degraded, so there are often prolonged traffic jams, posing many potential risks to traffic safety and environmental sanitation, greatly affecting traffic flow at the border gate area.
Meanwhile, across the border, according to survey results, in the two provinces of Sekong and Salavan (Laos), there are estimated coal reserves of about 1 billion tons. Particularly at the Kaleum coal mine in Sekong province, the plan for 2024 is that the mine will exploit a total output of about 22.6 million tons. Of which, about 19 million tons will be exported abroad, and 11 million tons will be exported to the Vietnamese market.
According to the La Lay International Border Gate Customs Branch, with the current infrastructure at the border gate, if 11 million tons of coal are imported, it will not be able to meet the demand. For example, in 2023, at many times the border gate received about 500 vehicles per day, causing serious congestion. Not to mention, after receiving imported coal trucks, National Highway 15D from the border gate and the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road connecting National Highway 15D with National Highway 9 had many sections showing signs of deterioration and damage...
Invest to capture great potential
According to the People's Committee of Quang Tri province, the potential for coal imports through La Lay International Border Gate is huge, possibly reaching 500 million tons in the next 50 years. Therefore, many investors have researched, surveyed and proposed investment projects on transportation infrastructure, warehouses, and offloading of coal vehicles, as well as proposed projects on services and fuel supply for people and vehicles in the La Lay International Border Gate area.
Since 2023, Quang Tri province has received many proposals for investment in infrastructure construction projects to transport coal from Laos to Vietnam through La Lay International Border Gate. To facilitate investors, Quang Tri province has actively and proactively worked with relevant ministries, branches and agencies, proposed to the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for support, and agreed to direct the implementation of procedures for project approval.
Mr. Le Duc Tien - Vice Chairman of Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee - said that the locality has worked and supported investors such as Central Capital Investment Company Limited, Nam Tien Company Limited, PTS Vien Dong Company Limited; Anh Phat Petro Joint Stock Company... to research and propose projects on conveyor belts, specialized ports, loading and unloading yards, service infrastructure, warehouses... to serve coal transportation activities from Laos to Vietnam.
In particular, Quang Tri province has approved the investment policy and approved the investor to build a conveyor system to transport coal from Laos to Vietnam through A Ngo commune, Dakrong district (Quang Tri province) for Nam Tien Company Limited. The project has a total investment capital of more than 1,489 billion VND, phase 1 will build a conveyor belt to transport coal from Laos to Vietnam on the Vietnamese territory with a length of more than 6km, when put into operation, it will transport more than 15 million tons of coal/year...
“In the context of high demand for coal transportation, investors are highly determined in implementing investment projects. As a result, the projects are being accelerated and are expected to be put into operation soon, contributing to improving the efficiency of coal transportation from Laos to Vietnam,” Mr. Le Duc Tien informed.
