Authorities in the southern province of Dong Nai have handed over more than 1,800 hectares of cleared land for the first phase of the Long Thanh International Airport project.

Authorities in Dong Nai Province hand over more than 1,800 hectares of cleared land for the first phase of the Long Thanh International Airport project on October 20.

The land, which is a part of the total of 5,000 hectares for the construction of the project, was transferred to the Southern Airports Authority at a ceremony held on October 20.

Speaking at the ceremony, Chairman of Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee Cao Tien Dung said that Long Thanh District has paid VND1.3 trillion in compensation for 611 households and individuals.

“The following payments will be done this month,” he said. “We will inspect the remaining 3,200 hectares of land and set the compensation price in the remaining months of the year to hand it over in the second quarter of 2021.”

Attending the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Transport, Le Anh Tuan praised efforts by Dong Nai authorities in the site clearance work.

According to Dong Nai chairman the Long Thanh International Airport will be Vietnam’s biggest airport when the three construction phases are completed by 2050.

“The airport is designed to handle up to 100 million passengers and five million tonnes of cargo per year once with an estimated capital of VND336.6 trillion,” he said. “It is expected to be put into operation from 2025 to serve 25 million passengers and 1.2 tonnes of cargo per year.”