Project cargo · Door-to-site · Vietnam
One plan for vessel, port, permit and road, run from one desk with our own lowbeds, customs agent and lashing crew.
For freight agents, EPC contractors and factories relocating equipment. · What to send us
Most delays on project cargo in Vietnam do not happen at sea. They happen in the last 50 km: a permit that was applied for after the vessel berthed, a bridge that nobody measured, a crane booked for the wrong day. This page explains how we plan those last kilometres, how long each step takes, and what you need to send us to get a firm quote.
For road transport, Vietnamese law looks at the loaded vehicle, not the cargo alone. Under Circular 12/2025/TT-BXD, amended by Circular 19/2026/TT-BXD, a move needs an oversize or overweight road permit when the vehicle with its load exceeds any limit below.
| Limit | Threshold (vehicle + cargo) | What it means for your shipment |
|---|---|---|
| Width | over 2.5 m | Most over-width flat racks. Our own trucks already hold a permit for flat racks of about 3.3 m wide. |
| Height | over 4.2 m (4.35 m for container vehicles) | Tall machinery and open top cargo. Route needs a clearance check for bridges and overhead lines. |
| Length | over 20 m | Long beams, crane booms, pipe racks, tower sections. |
| Gross weight | over 48 t | Heavy single pieces: presses, transformers, reactors. Axle loads and bridges must be checked. |
Anything above these limits is project cargo in practice, whatever the commodity. The permit is issued by the provincial Department of Construction or the Vietnam Road Administration when the route crosses provinces. The permit names the vehicle plate, the route and the time window, so the plan has to be fixed before the application goes in.
Drawings with lifting points help us size cranes on the first reply. Ocean options and customs scope follow the same working day.
Every heavy or oversized job runs through the same ten steps from our internal operations procedure. No step is skipped because a route “should be fine”.
Once the application file is complete, the authority processes it in about two working days. The real lead time depends on what has to happen before the file is complete. These are the planning times we use.
| Type of move | Typical lead time | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
| Simple OOG on a route we know | 3–5 working days | Standard file, no new survey |
| OOG that needs a field survey | 5–10 working days | Survey report, photos and measured control points |
| Super-heavy, complex bridges | 10–20 working days | Axle load and bridge checks with the road authority |
| Reinforcement, several provinces, police, night moves | 15–30 working days | Coordination between provinces and traffic police |
Send us the drawing as soon as the purchase order is signed, not when the vessel sails. That one change removes most demurrage and storage costs on project cargo in Vietnam.
Most project cargo for southern Vietnam lands at Ho Chi Minh City or Cai Mep and goes to industrial zones within a few hours’ drive. The route, not the distance, sets the price.
| Port | Typical destinations | What we check first |
|---|---|---|
| Cat Lai (Ho Chi Minh City) | Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Long An industrial zones | City truck curfews, flyover clearances, gate width at the terminal |
| Cai Mep–Thi Vai | Phu My, Ba Ria–Vung Tau, Dong Nai | Heavy-lift discharge plan, axle loads on access roads |
| River terminals: SPCT, SPITC, Ben Nghe, Lotus, Tan Thuan, Hiep Phuoc | Ho Chi Minh City, Long An, Dong Nai | Hook-to-truck availability, barge option for the heaviest pieces |
| Hai Phong (incl. Lach Huyen) | Northern industrial zones | Bridge limits on provincial roads, escort requirements |
Need a long-haul leg or a destination near a border? We have delivered pressure vessels from Bien Hoa to Moc Bai near the Cambodian border, and cable reels from Cat Lai to Khanh Hoa in central Vietnam. See more on our heavy haulage and OOG trucking page.
A few jobs that show the range of project cargo in Vietnam we handle, inbound and outbound. Customer names are withheld at our customers’ request; routes, dates and equipment are as recorded in our job files.
Ho Chi Minh City and several provinces restrict heavy trucks in daytime on urban roads, and a slow convoy is safer when traffic is light. A night move needs the permit window, the escort and the receiving site all aligned, so we confirm the site’s receiving hours before we book the convoy.
Our crews send photos at loading, after lashing and on arrival, so you can update your customer without waiting for the morning.
Most project cargo in Vietnam comes from three sectors, each with its own typical pieces and risks.
Transformers, boilers, heat exchangers, wind turbine parts, cable reels for grid projects.
Presses, production lines, tanks and pressure vessels moving into Vietnamese industrial zones.
Mobile and tower cranes, crawler crane components, steel structures and bridge sections.
Send what you have; we will ask for the rest. With these items we can usually give a firm trucking plan on the first reply.
| Item | Why we need it |
|---|---|
| L × W × H and weight per piece | Decides trailer, permit class and escort |
| Drawing with lifting points and centre of gravity | Sizes cranes and lashing; avoids a second lift |
| Port of discharge or pick-up, and site address | Lets us pick the corridor and check gates |
| Ready date and required delivery date | Sets permit timing and night-move windows |
| Incoterm and customs regime (normal, temporary import, duty exemption) | Defines who files what, and the documents needed before arrival |
| Site conditions: crane access, ground, receiving hours | Avoids surprises on the last 100 m |
Over-width and over-height containers through Cat Lai, Cai Mep and Hai Phong.
OOG containers →Units too large for any container, discharged hook-to-truck where possible.
Breakbulk →Lowbeds, networks, customs licence and the people you will deal with.
About Project Shipping →Tony Tuan, CEO: WhatsApp +84 909 411 668 · ceo@projectshipping.vn
Nura Tu, Overseas Department: WhatsApp +84 906 770 650 · overseas@projectshipping.vn
Calling from Vietnam: 0909 411 668
Last updated: October 2026 · Vietnamese version
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