Sokimex Cambodia and Vietnam’s Ministry of Construction are finalizing a proposal to construct a $6 million housing complex in central Phnom Penh, a top Sokimex official confirmed Sunday.
According to a recently published report in the Vietnam Investment Review, if completed, the project would be the largest overseas investment project ever taken by Vietnam. The assertion could not be independently confirmed.
Sok Kung, president of Sokimex, said Sunday that the project is still in the planning phase. And the company must also receive approval from Vietnamese and Cambodian governments. The proposal calls for Vietnam to foot at least 50 percent of the bill, although negotiations are ongoing, he said.
The project would construct a six-story apartment complex, and 26 three-story houses, according to documents cited in the report from the Ministry of Construction of Vietnam. The developers would build the housing complex on a half hectare of land owned by Sokimex.
The plot is located at the former BGI factory near Kandal Market.
Officials at Vietnam’s Ministry of Construction have signed off on the project and are lobbying for final approval. They have argued in Vietnam that the project would open a new market for Vietnamese workers and construction materials.
This is in line with the recent trend of regional integration, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Construction.
But Sok Kung noted Sunday that because the location of proposed site is in Cambodia, the project would also employ Cambodian workers.
“I think the project will open help Cambodia workers,” Sok Kung said.
Sokimex received a detailed proposal of how the costs would be shared from Vietnam last week. Sokimex is still studying the plan.
