Vietcombank, VietinBank lend $132 mln to upgrade former US airbase

• Cam Ranh Airport overloaded as Chinese tourists descend on Khanh Hoa
• Saigon airport secures more military land for $864 mln expansion
• Here's what Vietnam's multibillion-dollar airport will look like

Two major Vietnamese banks will arrange a credit worth nearly VND3 trillion ($132 million) to fund the expansion of Cam Ranh International Airport in the central region, one of the lenders said Monday.

VietinBank and Vietcombank, the country's second- and third-biggest listed banks by assets, signed the loan contract earlier Monday with a consortium of domestic firms on funding the first phase of the expansion project, Vietcombank said in a statement.

The airport was a U.S. airbase during the war and is now one of Vietnam's busiest international gateways.

The first phase of the expansion is slated to be completed in March 2018, at a cost of more than VND3.7 trillion, the Cam Ranh airport authority has said.

By 2030, the overcrowded airport would be able to handle at least 8 million passengers a year, from 6 million projected this year, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

Located north of the Cam Ranh Bay and 35 km (22 miles) south of the beach city of Nha Trang, Cam Ranh has been receiving a rising inflow of foreigners, led by Chinese and Russian tourists.

Related news:

> Cam Ranh Airport overloaded as Chinese tourists descend on Khanh Hoa

> Saigon airport secures more military land for $864 mln expansion

> Here's what Vietnam's multibillion-dollar airport will look like