Vietnamese shipyards will be picked via limited tender procedures to be eligible to build specialized ships for maritime research and survey purposes following a decision recently approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, according to government website chinhphu.vn.

Accordingly, only member companies of the Hanoi-based Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (SBIC), previously known as Vinashin, are allowed to join those tenders to secure the rights to build such ships, the website said on Friday.

Prime Minister Dung has assigned the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to actively work with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to allocate necessary capital for the project.

The premier has also agreed to extend the repayment of advance funding worth VND200 billion (US$9.2 million) to the end of 2015 to implement the project to build ships for maritime research and survey purposes as proposed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The three ministries are requested to choose shipbuilders to accelerate the implementation of the project and to meet the requirements of maritime research and survey tasks so as to ensure investment efficiency.

The project to build ships for maritime research and survey purposes was approved by the prime minister in late 2014.

The premier then agreed to advance VND200 billion for any firms getting involved in the project before June 30, 2015.

As reported by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the project will be carried out from now to the end of next year, while the installation of technical equipment for the maritime research and survey work will be done in the 2017-18 period.

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