Quang Tri focuses on strategic priorities

The visit and working session of General Secretary and President To Lam to Quang Tri Province in mid-October 2024 held particularly significant meaning. The visit not only demonstrated the profound concern of the senior leaders of the Party and the State for this land rich in revolutionary tradition, but also provided strategic direction, opening up new opportunities and development space for the locality. In recent times, Quang Tri Province has been implementing a range of synchronized solutions to realize the directives of the General Secretary, with many key projects already showing clear progress.

From the beginning of 2025, the Provincial People’s Committee promptly concretized the directives from the central government through Action Program No. 04/CTr-UBND, with clearly assigned responsibilities for each department, agency, and sector.

The Quang Tri Airport project is being accelerated by the investor. Photo: T.T

Following the directive of General Secretary To Lam regarding the pilot project of the Lao Bao - Densavan joint Cross-Border Economic and Trade Zone, the Provincial People’s Committee submitted the proposal to the Prime Minister on March 27, 2025. On April 29, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha instructed the Provincial People’s Committee to complete the proposal based on feedback from relevant ministries, and assigned the Ministry of Finance to lead the feasibility assessment and propose a pilot mechanism. Immediately after that, the Provincial People’s Committee assigned the Provincial Economic Zone Management Board to take the lead in finalizing the proposal and prepare to work with ministries and agencies.

The task of adjusting the master plans of the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone and the Lao Bao Special Economic and Trade Zone was urgently implemented by the province. The decision to expand the boundaries of the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone by an additional 2,350 hectares, increasing the total area to 26,142 hectares, is a strategic vision aimed at enlarging development space and attracting investment. This includes the addition of a reserved area for the construction of Quang Tri Airport and an industrial-logistics complex. Despite some procedural obstacles and the need for a time extension, the province is making maximum effort to submit the plan for approval by the Prime Minister in June 2025. At the same time, it has directed relevant units to develop detailed plans to ensure the timely achievement of key milestones.

For the master plan adjustment project of the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone to 2045, due to changes in the boundaries, the Provincial People’s Committee reported to the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Construction to request an extension of the project implementation timeline until December 31, 2025. Meanwhile, it is expediting the process, striving to approve the adjustment task by June 30, 2025, and the adjusted master plan by August 15, 2025.

Regarding the adjustment of the general construction plan for the Lao Bao Special Economic and Trade Zone, after the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee concluded to temporarily delay this task, the Provincial People’s Committee directed the Provincial Economic Zone Management Board to continue reviewing and proposing an appropriate timeline for the plan adjustment.

In implementing the policy to develop Con Co Island District with a strong economy and solid national defense, the Con Co Island District People’s Committee established a steering committee to draft the development proposal and selected the Institute of Strategy and Economic-Financial Policy as the consulting unit.

This proposal is expected to lay an important foundation to maximize economic potential while strengthening national defense and security for Con Co Island District, contributing to the overall development of the province. The draft proposal has completed the consultation process and is being finalized for submission to the Provincial People’s Committee for review and approval.

The investment in the construction of National Highway 15D and the Cam Lo – Lao Bao Expressway are strategic transportation infrastructure projects that play an important role in connecting the East–West Economic Corridor.

Regarding National Highway 15D, the province has committed to allocating US$13.36 million from the local budget for site clearance, upgrades, and the construction of new sections, aiming for completion by 2025. The Ministry of Finance and the Government Office have also included this project in the list of projects to be funded from the central government’s revenue surplus in 2024, with a total value of US$62.88 million. For the section from the Cam Lo – La Son Expressway to the western branch of the Ho Chi Minh Road, the province has proposed that the Prime Minister support the project with US$60.86 million from the central government budget for the 2026–2030 period.

The Cam Lo – Lao Bao Expressway project, with a total investment of approximately US$547.86 million under the Public-Private Partnership model, is currently being actively reviewed and finalized by the province. The Provincial People’s Committee has continuously submitted documents to the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance requesting central budget support. Relevant ministries and agencies are also working closely to complete the documentation for submission to the appropriate authorities for consideration. The eastern bypass road of Dong Ha City, especially the section from Doc Mieu to National Highway 9, has completed over 57.5 percent of the construction volume.

The road connecting the eastern and western branches of the Ho Chi Minh Road, which began construction in February 2022, has now reached about 66 percent completion. The coastal road project connecting the East–West Economic Corridor has a total investment of US$80.96 million and a length of approximately 48 kilometers (Phase 1), to be implemented from 2021 to 2026. Currently, all four bidding packages are under construction, reaching 35.5 percent of the project’s value (approximately US$22.57 million). Site clearance has been completed for 53 percent of the project, with 25.4 kilometers handed over.

The Provincial People’s Committee has issued numerous specific directives, requiring relevant departments, agencies, and especially the Department of Construction and the People’s Committees of districts and cities where the projects pass through, to mobilize manpower and urgently resolve all public concerns and obstacles, accelerating the progress of resettlement areas. The goal is to hand over clean land as early as possible to facilitate contractors in speeding up construction and ensure the projects are completed according to the approved schedule.

With energy development identified as a breakthrough area, the province is actively addressing obstacles and accelerating the progress of power projects. Currently, 11 wind power projects with a total capacity of 424 megawatts are under implementation, with several expected to begin operation in the third and fourth quarters of 2025. Small hydropower projects and especially Phase 1 of the Hai Lang LNG project (1,500 megawatts) are also being actively constructed.

In addition, the completion of transmission grid projects such as the 500-kilovolt Quang Tri Substation, the 500-kilovolt Lao Bao – Quang Tri 2 switching station line, and the 220-kilovolt transmission line from the Savan 1 Wind Power Plant (Laos) to the 220-kilovolt Lao Bao Substation will strengthen power transmission capacity and provide a solid foundation for the province to further develop potential wind power projects.

Quang Tri is also actively improving the investment environment and simplifying administrative procedures to attract investors in clean energy fields such as wind power, solar power, LNG-fired power, green hydrogen, and green ammonia.

The national museum project “War Memory and Aspiration for Peace” in Quang Tri Province, with a total estimated investment of US$39.3 million, promises to become a symbol of peace and the aspirations of the Vietnamese people. The selected construction site for the museum is located to the northeast of the Ben Hai River junction, within the conservation, restoration, and rehabilitation planning area of the special national historical site Hien Luong – Ben Hai (Hien Luong Hamlet, Hien Thanh Commune, Vinh Linh District).

Currently, the project has been consolidated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and included in the feasibility study report for the national target program for cultural development for the period 2025 – 2035, which has been submitted to the Prime Minister for approval.

The province is actively directing relevant authorities to coordinate with concerned ministries and sectors, while also studying models of large-scale museums that have been successfully constructed and operated in other localities. Alongside the model research, the province is conducting on-site surveys and preparing investment procedures for the project.

In addition, Phase 1 of the Le Duan School of Politics project is being reviewed and the planning adjusted to ensure alignment with actual conditions and new development requirements.

The determined and comprehensive efforts by Quang Tri Province to realize the strategic directives of General Secretary To Lam demonstrate a strong commitment to creating breakthrough development, turning the locality into a dynamic, sustainable, and integrated province.

Thanh Truc - Ngoc Mai