Nguyen Cao Cuong was appointed chairman of the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) after being elected to its board of directors with a near-unanimous vote at the annual meeting this morning.

The position had been vacant since ACV removed Vu The Phiet from the chairman role in March. Le Van Khien, a board member, had served as acting chairman and legal representative since then.

Nguyen Cao Cuong (center) receives his appointment as ACV chairman on 19/6. Photo: Phuong Dong

Born in 1976, Nguyen Cao Cuong holds a bachelor's degree in finance and banking. He began his career as an accounting and finance staff member, progressing to deputy team leader and then team leader for domestic cargo services. In mid-2022, he became director of the airport services and operations center for Vietnam Airlines Corporation. One year later, he assumed the role of deputy general director at ACV, a position he held until his current appointment as chairman of the board of directors.

Cuong also currently serves as chairman of the board of directors for Saigon Ground Services Joint Stock Company (SAGS).

At the annual meeting on 19/6, ACV finalized a revenue plan to increase by 2% compared to last year, reaching 21,141 billion VND. However, pre-tax profit is projected to be 7,011 billion VND, a significant decrease from the 15,203 billion VND recorded in last year's consolidated financial report. This marks the lowest profit level since 2021.

According to leadership, the sharp decline in profit is due to the company entering a peak investment phase with several major projects nearing completion. This will lead to increased depreciation, operating, maintenance, and interest expenses. Additionally, accumulated funds from previous years will be allocated to national key projects, resulting in a substantial reduction in expected bank deposit interest.

"Some new facilities commencing operations in the 2025-2026 period will have core benefits in the medium and long term, but in the short term, they will increase operating and depreciation costs, affecting profit margins," ACV leadership stated.

The corporation estimates total investment this year at approximately 286,900 billion VND and a capital investment plan of about 40,570 billion VND, both significantly higher than last year.

Nguyen Duc Hung, ACV's acting general director, announced that Long Thanh Airport will begin trial operations in September and officially commence operations by December 2026. He emphasized that this is a fixed target. Key components, such as the passenger terminal, are largely complete.

ACV is the investor for the Long Thanh International Airport project, a national key project spanning approximately 5,000 ha with a total investment of nearly 337,000 billion VND. Phase one of the project involves investing in two runways and one terminal with a capacity of 25 million passengers.

Hung also indicated that after the completion of Long Thanh project's phase one, ACV leadership will consider using remaining profits for cash dividends. This has not been done for the past 7 years as resources were dedicated to key projects. The formal plan, he added, could be presented at the 2027 shareholder meeting after consulting with the managing authority, the Ministry of Finance.

Phuong Dong