A fast-track FDI licensing process has been used for the first time.

Just five days were required to license a $76.7-million bubble-jet colour printer plant, to be built on the outskirts of Hanoi by Japan's Canon.

Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Xuan Gia praised the process, known as 'registration,' in contrast to the slower and more complicated 'evaluation' licensing approach.

FDI manufacturing firms eligible for 'registration' licensing must commit to export at least 80 per cent of output and have minimum capital of $5 million. And such a licensing should never take over 15 days.

The Canon venture is wholly foreign. It is to set up on a 20-hectare site in the Japanese-backed Thang Long Industrial Zone. Production should start early next year. Two thousand employees and annual output of seven million units are two of Canon's targets.

While all products should be exported, some may be sold locally after re-import.

"We chose Vietnam to invest in since we see Vietnam has a very high-level dynamic for progressing in the future," Sachio Kageyama, senior general manager of Canon Vietnam, said.

The project falls into a group of high-tech categories for "especially encouraged projects," and should be afforded a range of incentives.

Canon is the fourth tenant in Thang Long Industrial Zone. The $53-million industrial zone, a joint venture with Sumitomo Corp, was put into operation in the middle of last year.