It is being reported that the Vietnamese government has given approval in principle for STX Shipbuilding Co. Ltd of South Korean, to build a $500m shipyard covering 300 hectares in the Van Phong Economic Zone in Vietnam. Vietnam is keen to progress shipbuilding as a national champion and this is the latest development towards her goal of becoming a world-class shipbuilder to rival other countries such as China, South Korea and Japan. Although there are 'certain formalities' to go through before final approval, it is almost certain that there are just purely formalities and the construction of the new shipyard will go ahead, as Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has instructed state agencies 'to help' the company with them.