Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Monday cut the ribbon to open to traffic the Dam Cung Bridge in the southernmost province of Ca Mau, built to help improve inter-regional trade and transportation in the Mekong Delta.
The concrete bridge, 668 meters long and 12 meters wide, spans the Bay Hap River to connect the two districts of Cai Nuoc and Nam Can.
The operation of Dam Cung Bridge would put an end to decades of ferry services over several parts of National Highway 1A, including Dam Cung Ferry.
The project owner there is the Ho Chi Minh Highway Project Management Unit, an arm of the Ministry of Transport.
Addressing the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Prime Minister Dung appraised efforts by the ministry, the unit, local officials and residents together with those involved in the bridge construction over the past three years. He said the bridge played an important role not only for Ca Mau Province itself but also for the Mekong delta region as a whole.
The bridge is the last piece of the inter-province Ho Chi Minh Highway that connects the southern end of the country to the rest. It cost more than VND351 billion (over US$16.7 million) to build the bridge.
Ho Chi Minh City Party chief Le Thanh Hai, a Politburo member, and Transport Minister Dinh La Thang were among the VIPs who attended the bridge opening ceremony.
Also on Monday, the Prime Minister Dung attended the launch of the first commercial product at the Ca Mau Fertilizer Plant in U Minh District of the province.
The US$780 million facility is designed to manufacture 800,000 tons of urea a year at full capacity, which would meet 40 per cent of Vietnam’s demand.
The plant is one of the key national projects with an aim to secure a stable supply of fertilizer for Vietnam until 2025.
It is the last component of the Ca Mau Gas-Power-Fertilizer Complex in Ca Mau Province. The complex, once in full operation, will generate industrial output worth up to VND34 trillion, or about US$1.62 billion, and provide direct jobs for some 1,200 people.
Prime Minister Dung, on the same day, attended the opening ceremony of the renovated and upgraded Relics Complex for late President Ho Chi Minh in Ca Mau Province.
