A five-star resort project once expected to become a landmark tourism destination in Duong Dong, Phu Quoc Special Zone, An Giang Province, has officially been terminated after standing abandoned for more than a decade.
Under the decision, the developer of Sheraton Phu Quoc Resort must demolish all unfinished structures within four months of the project's termination.
The resort, located on Tran Hung Dao Street, occupies a prime coastal site linking the centre of Phu Quoc Special Zone with Phu Quoc International Airport and the Bai Truong tourism complex to the south. The remaining side of the project faces the sea, placing it on one of the island's most valuable stretches of land.
Designed in a sweeping arc along the coastline, the resort's accommodation blocks were connected by double-sided corridors overlooking both the sea and Tran Hung Dao Street, the main thoroughfare through Duong Dong.
The project first received an investment registration certificate from the Phu Quoc Economic Zone Management Board in August 2013, with its most recent amendment approved in June 2023.
Authorities said the investment was terminated because the developer failed to complete and operate the resort within the committed timeframe. The project was also found ineligible for a legal extension under Vietnam's investment regulations.
According to the developer, the resort was planned to provide around 30,000 square metres of floor space and more than 300 guest rooms, alongside conference facilities, meeting rooms, a shopping centre, a children's entertainment area, swimming pools and restaurants. The project carried an investment of more than VND 1.1 trillion (USD 42 million).
However, construction stalled after the structural framework was completed in 2015. Since then, the site has remained entirely vacant, with overgrown vegetation covering the property and unfinished buildings left exposed, becoming a prominent eyesore at the entrance to the centre of Phu Quoc Special Zone.
Construction workers have long disappeared from the site. The developer has fenced off the property with metal barriers, blocking all access points.
The withdrawal forms part of a broader campaign by provincial authorities to tighten enforcement of investment regulations. Since the beginning of the year, Phu Quoc has terminated 19 projects for failing to meet construction schedules.
The demolition of Sheraton Phu Quoc Resort is intended to recover the strategically located site and prepare land for key infrastructure upgrades ahead of the APEC Leaders' Week scheduled for 2027.