The Airports Corporation of Viet Nam (ACV) has suggested building a new terminal exclusively serving international flights at the Da Nang International Airport, the largest of its kind in the central region.

The airport currently has only one terminal for both domestic and international flights, and it is essential to separate these two services, the ACV said in a report submitted to the Ministry of Transport.

The ACV was tasked with preparing the proposal to construct the new terminal by the ministry in a meeting early last month.

Foreign tourists are seen at the Da Nang International Airport on January 31, 2014.

The company thus proposed setting up a new international terminal at a total cost of 3.2 trillion VND (146.99 million US$), according to the report.

The project will be developed by a joint venture between the ACV and three other Vietnamese investors, including the Thang Long Air Service Corporation (Taseco), AOV Investment, and the Ha Noi Construction Corporation (Hancorp). The ACV will hold 10% of the venture.

The ACV suggested locating the new terminal next to the current facility. The international terminal will span 40,000 square meters and be capable of serving 2.3 million passengers a year in its initial phase, and later, four million.

The corporation said construction should start in January 2016 and finish in June the following year, so that the new facility can serve the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, which will be held in Da Nang in October and November 2017.

The airport is expected to reach its threshold next year, and the number of passengers traveling through the facility could be as many as 16 million in 2030, according to ACV general director Le Manh Hung.

(Source: tuoitrenews)