Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has directed Dong Nai Province to coordinate with Ho Chi Minh City to urgently implement a railway line connecting Ho Chi Minh City with Long Thanh International Airport, aiming to ensure seamless transport connectivity.

This morning, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, head of the Steering Committee for key national railway projects, chaired the committee’s seventh meeting.

Concluding the session, the Prime Minister emphasized the urgent need to review, develop, amend and finalize a unified system of standards and regulations for railways and urban railways nationwide to ensure synchronization, connectivity and overall system efficiency.

He reaffirmed the viewpoint of continuing to refine railway planning in line with the country’s new development space and that of localities, with a long-term vision, thinking big and acting boldly, and developing the railway industry and system with a 100-year outlook.

During implementation, he stressed the importance of evaluating and optimizing the efficiency of railway and urban railway lines; utilizing inspection and audit tools to assess effectiveness; reviewing procedures, total investment levels, pricing issues, bidding and contractor appointment to ensure strict compliance; and preparing plans to optimize operational efficiency from the outset.

The selection of investors and contractors, whether through bidding or appointment, must strictly comply with the law, ensure project effectiveness and prevent corruption, misconduct, collusion or waste of public assets.

Regarding the North-South high-speed railway project, the Ministry of Construction has been instructed to complete bidding documents for consultancy services to prepare the feasibility study within March and to select a qualified consultant in the second quarter, ensuring the chosen partner has sufficient experience and capacity.

For the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway project, the Prime Minister underscored its special significance as a Vietnam - China cooperation project with very high requirements for progress and quality. Ministries, sectors and localities must treat it as a key political task and concentrate resources on implementation.

The Ministry of Construction is tasked with completing the preliminary feasibility study for component project 2 within March, ensuring quality and regulatory compliance. The ministry will also coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote negotiations with China on a cross-border railway bridge construction agreement within March.

The Ministry of Finance is required to proactively calculate savings from 5% expenditure cuts and increased revenue in 2025 to allocate capital for the project and assess potential borrowing options if effective.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will work with China to concretize high-level agreements and arrange a meeting of the Vietnam - China Intergovernmental Committee on railway cooperation in March to sign relevant contracts.

The six provinces and cities along the route are urged, in the spirit of clear accountability, to promptly complete agreements with investors on issues such as intersecting works, water supply and drainage plans, restoration of technical infrastructure, material mines and disposal sites, and architectural plans for stations and bridges.

For the planning of the Hanoi - Lang Son and Hai Phong - Mong Cai lines, the Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Construction to work with Chinese counterparts within March to agree on the timeline for signing a technical assistance agreement, and to direct consultants to complete preliminary reports in March as a basis for subsequent steps, ensuring completion of planning in 2026.

Regarding urban railway projects in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the Prime Minister directed the two cities to urgently review and coordinate with the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Science and Technology to develop and issue unified standards and regulations for urban railways, ensuring connectivity, synchronization, universality and modernity. They must also focus on site clearance and construction, guaranteeing progress, quality, absolute labor safety and environmental sanitation.

For the Ben Thanh - Can Gio railway line, he called for continued review of mechanisms and policies to accelerate implementation in line with Politburo Resolutions 57 and 68. Ho Chi Minh City is required to finalize settlement procedures for Metro Line 1 Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien.

For projects planned for investment and groundbreaking during the 2026-2030 period, both cities must report on implementation plans and urgently complete necessary procedures in accordance with regulations.

The Prime Minister directed Dong Nai Province to coordinate with Ho Chi Minh City to promptly implement the railway line connecting Ho Chi Minh City with Long Thanh International Airport to ensure smooth, timely and high-quality transport connectivity. He agreed in principle to implement the project under emergency procedures, while strictly adhering to regulations and processes, and preventing corruption, misconduct, waste and inefficiency.

Tran Thuong