In November Tan Vu port in Hai Phong handled its 1 millionth TEU of goods by completing customs clearance and the safe loading of more than 60,000 cars, fulfilling the 2022 plan 45 days ahead of schedule. The volume of container cargo going through Hoang Dieu port, another branch of Hai Phong port, totaled 6 million tons, up 10% from the previous year.

The 2022 impressive growth of the Hai Phong Port Company is partly due to the digital transformation. Since the beginning of the year, Hai Phong port has deployed its e-port service to Tan Vu Port and used the "Smart Gate” application to increase productivity and convenience for shipping lines and transport enterprises.

Dao Ngoc Khanh of the HTM Logistics Joint Stock Company in Hai Phong recalled they used to queue up for a long time to complete paper customs declarations.

“But since the advent of e-port, everything has become much faster and more convenient. Now as long as someone at the company sends an email to the shipping company, they will issue the permit for you. Validating containers is done through images so customers don’t have to go to the port yard anymore. As soon as the one-stop shop is applied to cargo quarantine, the required procedures can be completed at the counter in the yard,” said Khanh.

2022 was the third consecutive year the Hai Phong Port Company was in the top 5 logistics companies, according to an evaluation report on Vietnam’s seaport exploitation.

Chu Minh Hoang, Deputy Director General of the Hai Phong Port Company, said the company has paid close attention to comprehensive digital transformation towards creating a green, smart port.

“In addition to e-port and the Smart Gate system, the management and operation of vehicles, equipment, and people at the port have been digitized. The exchange of information and answering customers’ inquiries have been automated, using chatbot and AI systems,” said Hoang.

Other seaports in Hai Phong also achieved high growth rates last year. Tan Cang-Hai Phong International Container Terminal received super-tonnage vessels and opened a new trans-Pacific route directly to the West Coast of the US.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Doan Hai Tuan, Chairman of the Terminal’s member council, successfully handling the 1 millionth TEU of goods was an important milestone five years after the Tan Cang-Hai Phong international container port went into operation.

He concluded, “It’s an indication of the trust of shipping lines and the investment attraction of Hai Phong city and other northern provinces.”

To fulfill the seaport plan to 2020 with an orientation to 2030, Hai Phong’s administration and investors sped up development last year to turn Lach Huyen port, part of the Hai Phong port cluster, into a modern international gateway port and meet the international trans-shipment goal.

Hoang Dinh Tuan, Director General of the Hateco Group, an investor in the Lach Huyen Wharf Project No.5 and No.6, affirmed that Lach Huyen seaport is an international gateway port of special scale.

“Putting ports into operation early will help reach the targets set by the marine economic development strategy, ensure national sovereignty at sea, contribute to the cause of national industrialization and modernization, ship import and export goods of the northern region to Europe and the US, and fully tap the advantages of natural and geographical conditions to develop the Dinh Vu economic zone and the economy of Hai Phong city and the north,” said Tuan.

Last year, despite COVID-19, the volume of goods passing through Hai Phong port totaled 168 million tons, up nearly 12% from 2021. Along with Ho Chi Minh City port and Cai Mep port in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, Hai Phong port is among the 100 container ports with the largest cargo throughput in the world, according to the latest ranking of the UK’s Lloyd’s List.

After completing the planning and construction of large-scale, centralized logistics zones associated with the seaport system, Hai Phong will be an important link in the chain of regional seaports.