30 Years of Development of the Dung Quat Economic Zone and Quang Ngai Industrial Parks Authority

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Planning and Infrastructure Development as the Foundation for Growth

From a once underdeveloped coastal area, the Dung Quat Economic Zone has, after 30 years of development, emerged as one of Vietnam’s major industrial centers and a key growth driver for Quang Ngai Province and the Central Region. This achievement has been built on a long-term planning vision, systematic infrastructure investment and a consistent development strategy, laying a solid foundation for Dung Quat to gradually realize its goal of becoming a modern center for industry, urban development, services and logistics.

Planning as a Strategic Priority

“Planning must come first, and infrastructure must pave the way for development.” This principle has been consistently reflected throughout the nearly three decades of construction and development of the Dung Quat Economic Zone. It was further emphasized at a meeting on April 3, 2026, when the Prime Minister called for the development of a National Refining and Energy Center in the Dung Quat Economic Zone, based on the effective utilization of existing infrastructure advantages, integrated planning and the creation of new development space.

Over the past 30 years, planning has consistently been identified as a central task, providing strategic direction for infrastructure investment, investment attraction and the development of economic zones and industrial parks in a modern and sustainable manner. Since the General Planning for the Dung Quat Industrial Zone was approved by the Prime Minister in 1996, the planning system has been progressively supplemented and adjusted to meet development requirements at each stage.

A particularly significant milestone was the issuance of Decision No. 168/QD-TTg dated February 28, 2023, approving the Overall Adjustment to the General Construction Planning for the Dung Quat Economic Zone to 2045. The new planning framework not only expands the development space but also sets out a vision for Dung Quat to become a multi-sector and multi-disciplinary economic zone and a major industrial, urban and service center of the Central Region.

According to the Dung Quat Economic Zone and Quang Ngai industrial Park Authority (DEZA), nine of the 11 zoning plans formulated in accordance with the new general planning orientation have so far been completed, approved and publicly announced. These plans provide an important legal foundation for the implementation of investment projects in the coming period.

The integrated approach to planning - linking industrial development with urban areas, services, logistics and social infrastructure - has created significant room for growth. It has also laid the groundwork for Quang Ngai to gradually establish production linkages and value chains, while promoting foundational industries such as oil refining and petrochemicals, metallurgy, mechanical engineering, energy, and processing and manufacturing.

Alongside planning, the technical infrastructure system has been continuously upgraded and expanded. From its establishment through the end of 2025, approximately VND 6.064 trillion from the state budget was allocated to the Dung Quat Economic Zone for the development of core infrastructure. These resources have contributed to the formation of an increasingly integrated network of internal roads, power supply, water supply, drainage, telecommunications and technical infrastructure in industrial parks, meeting the requirements of large-scale projects.

In particular, the deep-water seaport system, capable of receiving vessels of up to 200,000 DWT, has created a distinctive competitive advantage for Dung Quat in industrial development, logistics and regional import-export activities.

In addition to investing in technical infrastructure, DEZA has placed strong emphasis on compensation, site clearance, resettlement and environmental protection. To date, 32 residential and resettlement areas, comprising approximately 5,339 land lots, have been developed, helping stabilize the lives of people living in project areas. At the same time, most operating industrial parks have been equipped with centralized wastewater treatment systems, contributing to environmental protection and sustainable development.

The principle of “planning first, infrastructure paving the way” continues to guide Quang Ngai’s development in the new period. On May 20, 2026, while chairing a meeting to give opinions on the partial adjustment of the 1:2,000-scale zoning plan for the Eastern Dung Quat Industrial Park, Vice Chairman of the Quang Ngai Provincial People’s Committee Do Tam Hien emphasized that the adjustment was necessary to promptly address existing obstacles, complete technical infrastructure, facilitate investment attraction and meet the requirements of industrial, energy and logistics development within the Dung Quat Economic Zone.

He stressed that the review and updating of planning must ensure consistency among technical infrastructure facilities and improve the feasibility of implementation. This, in turn, would create additional development space and enhance the competitiveness of the Dung Quat Economic Zone in the new period.

These achievements demonstrate that well-structured planning, together with systematic infrastructure development, has not only transformed the appearance of the Dung Quat Economic Zone but has also laid a solid foundation for Quang Ngai to strengthen its investment attraction capacity, expand its industrial development space and gradually affirm its position as one of the key growth poles of the Central Region.

Integrated Infrastructure Strengthens Investment Appeal and Expands Growth Space

The development of the Dung Quat Economic Zone demonstrates that planning and infrastructure not only facilitate the implementation of investment projects but have also become important competitive advantages for Quang Ngai in attracting large-scale investment.

With increasingly comprehensive transport systems, seaports and technical infrastructure, together with a continuously improving investment environment, Dung Quat has become a destination for numerous domestic and foreign corporations and enterprises. This has contributed to the formation of a large-scale, diversified industrial ecosystem with strong spillover effects.

As of May 2026, the economic zones and industrial parks managed by the Dung Quat Economic Zone and Quang Ngai Industrial Parks Management Board had attracted 441 valid projects with total registered capital of approximately VND 423.431 trillion, equivalent to approximately USD 19.4 billion. These included 63 foreign-invested projects with total registered capital of approximately USD 2.5 billion. Cumulative realized investment capital reached approximately USD 13.8 billion.

Approximately 349 projects are currently in operation, contributing to the formation of large-scale industrial production chains in the area.

A number of major projects have made and continue to make a significant contribution to the development of the area, including the Dung Quat Refinery, the Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel Integrated Complex, HD Hyundai Eco Vina, and the VSIP Quang Ngai Industrial, Urban and Service Complex, together with numerous projects in mechanical engineering, processing and manufacturing, energy, seaports and logistics.

These projects are not only significant in terms of investment scale but also play a leading role in industrial development, generating strong spillover effects for the local service, trade and logistics sectors.

Alongside investment attraction, the industrial park system in the province has continued to expand and improve its operational efficiency. Several industrial parks have achieved very high occupancy rates, including Quang Phu Industrial Park at 100%, Hoa Binh Industrial Park at 99.3%, the Saigon–Dung Quat Industrial Sub-zone at approximately 99.1%, and Tinh Phong Industrial Park at 98.2%. The average occupancy rate of operating industrial parks has reached approximately 79%.

At the same time, Quang Ngai continues to develop new industrial parks, including VSIP II Quang Ngai and Dung Quat Industrial Park, creating additional clean land reserves ready to accommodate large-scale, high-tech and green industrial projects in the coming period.

Thanks to its increasingly comprehensive infrastructure foundation, the Dung Quat Economic Zone has become a key industrial center of the province, with foundational industries including oil refining and petrochemicals, metallurgy, mechanical engineering, processing and manufacturing, energy and logistics.

From just 13 operating enterprises in 2005, the Dung Quat Economic Zone had, by May 2026, 183 enterprises with 214 projects engaged in production and business activities.

Export activities have grown strongly. The export turnover of enterprises in the Dung Quat Economic Zone increased from USD 22.3 million in 2004 to approximately USD 2.525 billion in 2025. Cargo throughput through the seaport system increased from 7.48 million tonnes in 2010 to 55.76 million tonnes in 2025.

During the 2005 - 2025 period, total state budget revenues from enterprises in the Dung Quat Economic Zone reached approximately VND 302.219 trillion. At the same time, the zone created jobs for approximately 81,800 workers.

Looking back over the past 30 years, it is clear that every stage of the Dung Quat Economic Zone’s development has been closely associated with forward-looking planning, systematic infrastructure investment and the gradual expansion of development space.

This foundation has not only enabled Quang Ngai to attract large-scale projects and strengthen its competitiveness, but has also created momentum for the province to realize its goal of developing Dung Quat into a modern center for industry, urban development, services and logistics in the Central Region.

Building on this foundation, Dung Quat is gradually moving toward the formation of a National Refining and Energy Center, in line with the strategic development direction that has been established.

By Thao Giang