Korea's Hyundai E&C to build smart green city in Vietnam

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. is poised to become the first South Korean company to join Vietnam’s green smart city development project.

The construction company and Vietnam’s Bitexco, a leading business group focusing on real estate, energy and transport sectors, signed an agreement on Aug. 29 to jointly develop Ha Nam Province’s new smart green city project, Hyundai E&C said on Tuesday.  

The project, co-led by Ha Nam province and Bitexco, aims to create a smart city in the province and build relevant service infrastructure. The new city will be 50 kilometers south of Hanoi.

The Vietnamese government is planning to develop the new city with an area three times that of Hanoi. It will accommodate more than 22.9 million people by 2030.

Hyundai E&C will join the construction of two main districts in the smart city project: a high-tech industrial district comprising research and development centers, offices, commercial centers and smart warehouses; and a downtown district consisting of residential and infrastructure.  

The districts will reach 15.24 million square meters, Hyundai E&C said.

The Korean company's work will encompass a wide range of the project, from basic design to mobility and robotics by using its smart technologies.

Hyundai E&C and Bitexco have built up trust for more than a decade. The Korean company constructed Bitexco Financial Tower, a Ho Chi Minh-based 262-meter-tall landmark with 68 floors, in 2010.

Other projects Bitexco awarded to Hyundai E&C JW Marriott Hanoi, completed in 2012, and Mong Duong 1 Thermal Power Plant in Cam Pha, Quang Ninh Province, built in 2016. 

The Korean firm will strengthen its leading position in exporting smart infrastructure, said Hyundai E&C CEO Yoon Young-joon. The strategic collaboration with Bitexco will contribute to Vietnam’s new city to foster the co-existence of environment and technologies, the CEO added.

Write to Eun-Ji Shim at summit@hankyung.com
Jihyun Kim edited this article.