Shin Dong-bin Visits Vietnam... Leading 1.2 Trillion Won 'Lotte Town' Project

Lotte Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City 'Thu Thiem Eco Smart City' Groundbreaking
Chairman Shin Dong-bin Leads Projects in Vietnam and Indonesia
Infrastructure Development Including Vietnam Integrated Smart Logistics Center and Indonesia Transportation Business

Lotte Chairman Shin Dong-bin (right) met with Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Chairman Phan Van Mai at the groundbreaking ceremony of Thu Thiem Eco Smart City held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on the 2nd, and requested support for the bid to host the "2030 Busan Expo."

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] Lotte is investing $900 million (approximately 1.2 trillion KRW) to build a premium smart city in Ho Chi Minh City, the economic capital of Vietnam. Shin Dong-bin, Chairman of Lotte, who has been expanding domestic and international activities following the special pardon on Liberation Day, has taken the lead in the full-scale development of ‘Lotte Towns’ in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Indonesia.

According to Lotte on the 5th, Chairman Shin held the groundbreaking ceremony for the ‘Thu Thiem Eco Smart City’ on the 2nd in the Thu Thiem district of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This is a large-scale complex development project that Lotte, which started its business in Vietnam in 1996 with the food sector, is undertaking to expand its business in Southeast Asia in earnest.

The Thu Thiem Eco Smart City will be built on a 50,000㎡ site in the Thu Thiem district of Ho Chi Minh City. With a total floor area of approximately 680,000㎡, 1.5 times the size of COEX, and consisting of 5 basement floors to 60 above-ground floors, it will include commercial facilities such as shopping malls, offices, hotels, residences, cinemas, and apartments. The Thu Thiem district is an area that Ho Chi Minh City is developing as a Southeast Asian economic hub by benchmarking the Pudong district of Shanghai, China, and is also densely populated with premium residential facilities.

Lotte plans to complete the Eco Smart City not just as a simple complex but as a premium smart complex that integrates Lotte’s cutting-edge smart technology and distribution experience. This is why Lotte Group officials, including Chairman Shin, Kim Sang-hyun, General Manager of the Distribution Division, Ahn Se-jin, General Manager of the Hotel Division, and Ha Seok-ju, CEO of Lotte Construction, all attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

The residential facilities will be spaces where digital healthcare services such as real-time information sharing using big data, home care services using the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and remote medical treatment are possible. Offices will feature facial recognition smart access systems and AI reservation management systems, while distribution facilities will apply smart payment, drones, and delivery robots. Hotels will offer experiences never before seen in Vietnam, such as smart concierge services and robot-assisted catering.

At the groundbreaking ceremony, Chairman Shin said, "This year marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Vietnam, and starting with this project, Lotte Group will further expand its investment in Vietnam." He emphasized, "The Eco Smart City, spanning from 5 basement floors to 60 above-ground floors, will house smart residential and distribution facilities that embody Lotte’s capabilities, becoming a landmark representing Vietnam in the future."

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, large-scale projects centered on the chemical sector are being actively pursued. On the 29th of last month, Chairman Shin visited the site of the ‘Raine Project’ in Banten Province, Indonesia, where a total of $3.9 billion is being invested, to check the progress and encourage employees. This is a mega petrochemical complex project where Lotte Chemical, in partnership with its subsidiary Lotte Chemical Titan, is constructing a naphtha cracker (NCC) and completing vertical integration with existing polyethylene (PE) plants.

Lotte is also committed to building foundational infrastructure. Lotte Global Logistics is constructing an ‘Integrated Smart Logistics Center’ in Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam, aiming for completion in 2024. This is to equip logistics capabilities that can respond to the Thu Thiem Eco Smart City and the Lotte Mall Hanoi, scheduled to open next year. The transportation business in Indonesia is also expanding. Anticipating large-scale logistics demand ahead of the relocation of Indonesia’s administrative capital, Lotte Global Logistics is focusing its capabilities on building transportation networks in the Jakarta area and EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) logistics projects.

Before attending the groundbreaking ceremony for the Thu Thiem Eco Smart City, Chairman Shin met with Toshiyaki Higashihara, Chairman of Hitachi Ltd. Hitachi is promoting social innovation businesses that combine IT and operational technology (OT) to realize a sustainable society, so close collaboration with Lotte is expected in the future. Support for hosting the ‘2030 Busan World Expo’ in Vietnam also continued. On the 31st of last month, Chairman Shin visited Nguyen Xuan Phuc, President of Vietnam, to discuss investments and promote the Expo bid. At the Thu Thiem Eco Smart City groundbreaking ceremony, he also highlighted Busan’s appeal as the Expo host city. A photo wall for the 2030 Busan World Expo was installed throughout the ceremony, promotional videos were screened during the official event, and Expo bid brochures were distributed to attendees.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.