The $300 Million Airport in Vietnam’s Town: A Global Beauty That’s Been Stalled for 3 Years. When Will Construction Begin?

Sapa Airport Prepares for the Third Bid Invitation

In mid-May 2025, according to Lao Dong Newspaper, dozens of households in Cam Con Commune, Bao Yen District, have moved to a new resettlement area, giving up their land for the construction of the 7 trillion VND Sapa Airport project.

Talking to the newspaper, a leader of the Project Management Board for Traffic Construction Works of Lao Cai Province said: “The second phase of site clearance for the Sapa Airport project has been completed. Lao Cai Province is coordinating with relevant parties to adjust policies to attract investors. After the adjustment, we will proceed with the third bid invitation in May and strive to commence the project in the fourth quarter of 2025.”

In 2021, the Prime Minister approved the investment policy for the Sapa Airport project, which would be implemented in the form of a public-private partnership (PPP). In 2022, the project officially commenced the site clearance process.

In May 2024, the Prime Minister signed Decision No. 400/QD-TTg to establish an inter-sectoral appraisal council to appraise the adjusted pre-feasibility study report for the Sapa Airport construction project in Lao Cai Province under the PPP format.

This move came after the People’s Committee of Lao Cai Province submitted Official Dispatch No. 49/Tr-UBND to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, requesting an appraisal of the adjusted pre-feasibility study report for the Sapa Airport construction project. In this adjustment, Lao Cai Province proposed to adjust the capital structure and the portion of state capital in the project.

Up to now, in 2025, the project has basically completed compensation, resettlement, site clearance, and land leveling. In the past time, the Lao Cai Department of Transportation has carried out procedures for selecting investors to commence the project. However, after two invitations for bidding, even with two deadline extensions, no partner has been found yet.

Key Airport Project

Sapa Airport is located in Cam Con Commune, Bao Yen District, with an area of 370 hectares. It is planned to become a dual-use airport, serving both military and civilian purposes. The first phase of the Lao Cai Airport project is expected to meet the travel needs of 1.5 million passengers per year by 2026.

The airport will be capable of accommodating aircraft such as the Airbus A320, A321, and equivalent or smaller models, with nine aircraft parking spots.

As per the policy approved by the Prime Minister in 2021, the airport project will be implemented in the form of a public-private partnership (PPP). Of the total investment of nearly VND 7,000 billion for the project, about VND 2,700 billion will come from the state budget, and the remaining will be mobilized by investors.

The construction of Sapa Airport is also divided into two phases. Specifically, in the first phase, Sapa Airport will be built to meet the standards of a 4C-class airport (according to the classification of the International Civil Aviation Organization – ICAO) and a military airport of level II, with a capacity of 1.5 million passengers per year.

The second phase will be implemented after 2028, completing the project’s components to reach a capacity of 3.0 million passengers per year, ensuring alignment with the planning.

To help Sapa soon become an international tourist destination, Lao Cai is determined to expedite the progress of investing in and constructing the Sapa Airport and connecting roads, such as expanding the Hanoi – Lao Cai highway.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Huy, Director of the Lao Cai Department of Transportation, said that the Lao Cai Airport project is one of the largest projects in the province during this term and is considered a work to celebrate the XVII Congress of the Provincial Party Committee. Therefore, Lao Cai is focusing its efforts and flexibly applying solutions to strive for the project’s commencement in 2025.