Japan’s Toshiba Corporation, Hitachi Ltd. and ITOCHU Corporation just signed a contract to supply the Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC) with an Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) package that includes electronic toll collection (ETC), traffic control and equipment monitoring systems.

The order has an estimated value of JPY4 billion ($39.6 million), and is the first for an integrated ITS package that Japanese companies have received from overseas.

The project will be supported by Japanese government loan assistance, and commercial operation is planned to start in the first half of 2017.

The ITS package will be installed on the 55 kilometre Ho Chi Minh City-Dau Giay section of Vietnam’s north-south expressway.

Under the contract, Toshiba will provide ITS equipment, Hitachi is responsible for construction and ITOCHU for related business affairs.

Installation of the ITS package on the Ho Chi Minh City-Dau Giay expressway will help cut traffic jams and improve logistics efficiency.

VEC, the project owner, evaluated the technical competence and installation record of companies that tendered for the order, and selected the Japanese companies on the basis of their competitive bid.

The north-south highway is currently under construction and will connect Hanoi capital with Ho Chi Minh City, crossing Danang in the heart of the country.

Once completed, it will be approximately 1,811km long.

To meet the country’s rapid economic growth, the Vietnamese government drew up a master plan in 2008 for the construction of 22 expressways spanning approximately 6,000km, including the north-south highway.

Toshiba is a world-leading diversified manufacturer, solutions provider and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products and systems.

The group was founded in 1875, and today operates a global network of more than 590 consolidated companies, with 206,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing $61 billion.

Hitachi Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 326,000 employees worldwide. The company's consolidated revenues for fiscal 2012 (ended March 31, 2013) totalled $96.1 billion.

With approximately 130 bases in 66 countries, ITOCHU is a leading sogo shosha (trading and investment company) and Fortune Global 500 company with revenues of nearly $49 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013.

Source: VIR