The site of the prison was formerly a
British Forces base called Lo Wu Camp, which was later used to accommodate
Vietnamese refugees. To help alleviate
prison overcrowding, the military base was converted into the minimum-security Lo Wu Correctional Institution, which upon completion in August 1997 had a capacity of 208. Work began in April 2007. Construction was carried out by contractor Yau Lee Group. The
design-and-build contract was administered by the
Architectural Services Department of the Hong Kong government. A topping-out ceremony was held on 11 August 2009. The project was completed in April 2010. The new facility began operation on 2 July 2010, when the first 135 inmates arrived from Chi Ma Wan Correctional Institution, which was subsequently closed for redevelopment. Others came Lai Chi Kok Correctional Institution, which also closed and was later merged into
Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre. The chief executive of Hong Kong,
Donald Tsang, formally opened the rebuilt Lo Wu Correctional Institution on 24 August 2010. The redevelopment project cost approximately HK$1.5 billion. ==Description==