Affirming its position as a national high-tech park

With over 22 years of growth, SHTP has cultivated an ideal environment for attracting investment in high-tech industries. As one of the three pillars of the Eastern Innovation City (Thu Duc city) comprising SHTP, Thu Thiem Financial Center and the National University, SHTP serves as the innovation hub, driving development, fostering groundbreaking ideas, and attracting domestic and international capital and technology.

As of June 2024, SHTP attracted 163 projects with a total registered investment capital of US$12.203 billion, including 52 foreign-invested projects with US$10.156 billion and 111 domestic projects with VND49,242.972 billion (US$2.051 billion). The presence of domestic and foreign high-tech projects, especially those invested by world-leading tech corporations such as Intel and Jabil (the US), Nidec, Nipro and NTT (Japan), Samsung (South Korea), Datalogic (Italy) and Besi (the Netherlands), has contributed to improving and enhancing the investment environment of Ho Chi Minh City, the southern key economic zone and the whole country.

Driven by tech giants, an endogenous high-tech capacity force has been formed and developed to undertake professional work, from high-tech transferring, application, R&D, training and incubation to manufacturing of high-tech products (made in Vietnam) at SHTP. Thus, it drives economic restructuring and shifts Ho Chi Minh City's growth model from extensive to intensive development; fosters research, mastery and innovation in high technology; cultivates strong, competitive high-tech enterprises to integrate into the global value chain; establishes a foundation for high-tech diffusion; and serves as the core for building a creative, highly interactive urban hub in the city's east.

Looking to the future and promoting its pioneering role, SHTP has been focusing on attracting investment projects to build up technological capacity in high value-added foundational industries based on some common factors such as employing advanced technology, new technology and high technology; actively joining the Fourth Industrial Revolution; creating products and technologies with high R&D content; exchanging and transferring technologies to boost scientific and technological development with endogenous capacity; fostering the city's competitive advantages in terms of industry, cost, and high-quality human resources to perfect the industrial ecosystem; enhancing the capacity of local businesses to enter the global supply chain; making high-tech, advanced products that may make inroads into foreign markets; promoting non-polluting and internationally accepted working environment for industries; advancing infrastructure readiness; and moving towards green and sustainable development.

Green and sustainable development for a better today and a brighter tomorrow

Since its inception, SHTP has obtained many achievements to prove its scientific and technological potential in implementing its dual goals of digital transformation and green transformation. Specifically, out of 163 valid investment projects, SHTP has 68 projects involved in microelectronics and information technology (42%), 29 biotechnology projects (18%), and 12 new materials technology, nano industry and new energy projects (7%). Tenants have significantly boosted Ho Chi Minh City's GDP and export value, with total exports surpassing US$16 billion in 2023. Leading firms like Intel, Samsung and Sanofi have committed to achieving net-zero emissions and transitioning to 100% renewable energy globally, while others, such as TTI, are making substantial strides in emissions reduction.

Many projects in SHTP spend an average of 1-5% of their annual revenue on new tech and product research and development. R&D expenditure of SHTP-based projects has increased gradually over the years (US$199.74 million in 2022, an increase of US$73.62 million (52%) from 2021), led by information technology projects (over 87%). SHTP's three public service providers conduct scientific and technological activities, including Saigon Hi-tech Park Research Laboratories (SHTP Labs), Saigon Hi-tech Park Incubation Center (SHTP IC), and Saigon Hi-tech Park Training Center. In particular, SHTP Labs has promoted endogenous capacity in research and incubation of digital and green tech firms with 45 intellectual property patents, 12 patent applications for typical new materials and MEMS. Three core technologies of pressure, air and wind sensors have been applied to the Smart City Development Program of Ho Chi Minh City. SHTP IC has incubated 131 projects of prioritized technology fields like digital (IoT, AIoT, microchips and IT), automation, biotech and new material technologies. Notable projects include ACIS Technology, Gremsy, Mideas, Cyfeer, Phenikaa MaaS, Ewater Engineering, MiSmart, Tep Bac, Benkon, TK25, Vilight and Senvi. These initiatives have been successfully commercialized and adopted by many companies, driving advancements in wastewater treatment, energy optimization, cost efficiency and agricultural automation.

On October 1, 2021, the Prime Minister issued Decision 1658/QD-TTg approving the National Strategy on Green Growth for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050. The decision emphasizes the need to rely on modern institutions and governance, advanced science and technology and high-quality human resources in line with the international landscape and domestic conditions; direct investment in advanced technology, digital transformation, smart and sustainable infrastructure; and create momentum for private investment to play an increasingly important role in the green economy. At its 13th meeting session in 2023, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council approved the theme for 2024 "Resolved to implement effective digital transformation and Resolution 98/2023/QH15 of the National Assembly", stating the goal of utilizing infrastructure, market, human resources and specific conditions to strongly develop the digital economy and boosting the interaction of digital transformation and green transformation. The Southeast Regional Planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, approved by the Prime Minister in Decision 370/QD-TTg dated May 4, 2024, also states solutions to developing industrial parks with green infrastructure and synchronous, modern services and utilities, ecological industrial parks operated with the circular business model. At the same time, it reiterates the orientation of developing SHTP into a multisector scientific and technological research center, a scientific and technological nucleus that drives the rapid development of the Southeast region in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

SHTP established a zero-emissions high-tech park project to develop a comprehensive framework of institutional solutions, attract investments in industries aligned with SHTP's strengths, and support the dual transformation strategy. As part of this initiative, SHTP introduced green criteria for investment projects in the park, including:

+ Projects have a roadmap and commitment to achieving net zero emissions by 2045 at the latest.

+ Projects have a plan to: (1) Reduce, reuse, recycle and sort waste at source; limit and move toward not using non-degradable plastic bags and disposable plastic products; plant and protect trees, develop green spaces and move towards a green economy; (2) Prioritize the use of renewable energy, with the ratio of renewable energy to total primary energy to reach at least 20% by 2030 and at least 65 - 70% by 2045; (3) Have solutions for energy efficiency and energy economy, with the ratio of saved energy on total final consumed energy compared to the normal development scenario to reach 7 - 10% by 2030 and about 14 - 20% by 2045; and (4) Reduce greenhouse gas emissions from energy activities compared to the normal development scenario by 15 - 35% by 2030 and up to 70 - 80% by 2045. Investors' commitment to adopting green criteria plays a decisive role in the success of SHTP Net Zero.

Investors at SHTP benefit from the highest regulatory investment incentives: 

- Special investment incentives:

According to Decision 29/2021/QD-TTg dated October 6, 2021 of the Prime Minister on special investment incentives.

- Incentives for strategic investors:

According to Article 7 of Resolution 98/2023/QH15 dated June 24, 2023 of the National Assembly on piloting some specific mechanisms and policies for Ho Chi Minh City development.

- Incentives for projects in SHTP:

+ Corporate income tax: Preferential rate of 10% for a 15-year period, with a tax exemption in four years and a 50% reduction of tax payable in the next nine years.

+ Import tax incentives: Tax exemption for imported goods to form fixed assets of projects in SHTP, including machinery and equipment, components, details, separate parts and spare parts for synchronized assembly or synchronized use with machinery and equipment; raw materials and supplies used to manufacture machinery and equipment or to manufacture components, details, separate parts and spare parts of machinery and equipment; specialized means of transport in the technological chain used directly for projects' production activities; and construction materials that cannot be produced domestically.

+ Import tax exemption for a 5-year period from the time of starting production, applied to raw materials, supplies and components that cannot be produced domestically and are imported for production of investment projects in SHTP.

+ Land rent incentives: Projects are eligible for land rent exemptions or reductions in accordance with Article 14 of Decree 35/2017/ND-CP, issued on April 3, 2017, which governs the collection of land use fees, land rents and water surface rents in economic and high-tech zones.

+ Projects are exempt from non-agricultural land use tax under Clause 1, Article 9, or benefit from a 50% reduction in payable tax amounts as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 10 of the Law on Non-agricultural Land Use Tax (48/2010/QH12), issued on June 17, 2010, by the National Assembly.