Construction started yesterday on the first phase of a Vietnamese business park that is majority owned by Ascendas.

OneHub Saigon, as the park in Ho Chi Minh City is called, will cost about US$130 million (S$185.2 million) to develop.

Phase 1, which will cost about US$80 million, involves building more than 12,000 sq m of business space and lifestyle amenities, including a mixed-use commercial development with retail components.

This phase is expected to be completed by 2018. The park will be developed in three phases.

OneHub Saigon will accommodate companies in sectors such as IT, media and logistics.

There will also be work-office-home-offices and education facilities. Work-office-home-offices are work facilities that have an attic or loft, and can thus accommodate work and living activities.

Ascendas owns 60 per cent of the park through a joint venture agreement with Saigon Bund Capital Partners, which holds the rest.

Ms Leow Siu Lin, Singapore's Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City, told the ground-breaking ceremony yesterday that Singapore's investments in Vietnam stood at more than US$32 billion, making it the third largest foreign investor in the country.

Around US$8.7 billion of that has been invested in Ho Chi Minh City, making Singapore the largest investor in the city, she added.

OneHub Saigon is at the entrance of Saigon Hi-Tech Park, one of the five key projects identified to drive Ho Chi Minh City's economic growth until 2025.

The park has attracted capital investments exceeding US$4.7 billion from almost 100 multinational companies. Its tenants include Samsung, Intel and Datalogic.