PM attends highway, hospital construction launch ceremonies in Thai Binh province

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attends a ground-breaking ceremony for a 1,000-bed general hospital. (Photo: Tran Hai)

The 34.4-kilometre long highway will cost an estimated VND3,872 billion (US$162.6 million) and is scheduled for completion in 2021, allowing a maximum speed of 80 kilometres per hour.

Prime Minister Phuc stated that this project will improve coastal road connections between provinces in the northern region, boost local socio-economic development and enhance national security in coastal areas.

Attending a ground-breaking ceremony for a 1,000-bed general hospital in the city of Thai Binh, PM Phuc was informed by the investor FLC of the project which will cost more than VND3.7 trillion (US$159 million) and will be constructed under the hospital-hotel model that meets international standards.

The first phase of the project with 500 beds is scheduled for completion in 2022, helping to make Thai Binh a high-quality healthcare centre in the southern region of the Red River Delta and reduce the burden on hospitals in Hanoi.

On the same day, the government leader attended the inaugural ceremony of the Thai Binh Thermal Power Plant.

The power station cost a total of VND26.6 trillion (US$1.1 billion), of which 85% was funded by Japanese official development assistance.

The coal-fired power plant has two turbines with a total generation capacity of 600 megawatts, expected to provide up to 3.9 billion kWh of electricity annually to the national power grid.

The plant is also expected to generate an annual revenue of VND6 trillion (US$258 million).

In his speech, PM Phuc underlined the importance of the Thai Binh Power Plant as one of Vietnam’s critical projects and the first major thermal power project designed by a Vietnamese company.

He emphasised that the project will help ensure safe and stable power supply and push the modernisation and industrialisation drive of Thai Binh province.

As part of his trip to Thai Binh, Prime Minister Phuc also attended a ceremony to announce the plan of an industrial park to serve agricultural production in Quynh Phu district.