The North-South Expressway attracts many investors

The chosen investors are from individual companies as well as joint ventures between local and foreign businesses.

The Mai Son-Highway No 45 project has 11 investors, according to the Department of Public-Private Partnership.

The section of Highway No 45-Nghi Son project, which covers 43km, with investment of more than 6.3 trillion VND (260 million USD), has five investors.

The Nghi Son-Dien Chau project which covers 50km, with investment of more than 8.3 trillion VND, has six investors.

Ten investors have been selected for the next bidding round for the Dien Chau-Bai Vot stretch.

Investors have also been chosen for the Nha Trang-Cam Lam project, Cam Lam-Vinh Hao project and Vinh Hao-Phan Thiet project.

The bidding application for the Phan Thiet-Dau Giay section opened on July 13 morning.

The section covers 99km, with investment of more than 14.3 million VND, including more than 2.4 trillion VND from the State budget.

The Ministry of Transport will evaluate preliminary bidding results in September and issue bidding documents from October 2019 to January 2020.

The ministry will evaluate bidding documents in January and February and approve the investor selection in March.

The North-South Expressway covers 2,109km, extending from the northern mountainous Lang Son province to the southern province of Ca Mau.

Once it is completed, it is expected to become the key route connecting traffic in the entire country.

A number of sections covering 601km are under construction.

Eleven more sections in the 2017-2021 period received investment of about 118.7 trillion VND, including 55 trillion VND from the State budget.

The three sections fully funded by the State budget are Cao Bo-Mai Son (15km), Cam Lo-La Son (98km) and My Thuan Bridge (7km).

Investors of Build-Operate-Transfer projects are allowed to collect toll fees, starting at 1,500 VND per km per car under 12 seats. The toll can be increased once every three years until it reaches 3,400 VND per km per car.

Council set up to assess express railway project

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has set up a State council to look into the North-South express railway project. This decision comes after the Ministry of Transport (MOT) and the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) presented significantly different cost estimates for construction of the rail line.

The council, which is led by Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung and his deputy ministers, will review the prefeasibility study of the transnational railway project.

Other members include leaders from various ministries, such as transport, finance, construction, science and technology, and justice; as well as the heads of the State Bank of Vietnam and of the Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises.

The leaders of many local governments, such as Hanoi, Danang, Dong Nai, and HCMC, where the railway is expected to travel through, will also join the council.

The council is allowed to retain a team of local and international consultants, but the group should be independent of the project’s own consultants, so that they provide an objective assessment of the prefeasibility study.

If necessary, the council may use the seal and bank account of the MPI to authorize its activities.

The MOT is responsible for providing files necessary for the appraisal process of the project, and arranging capital for the setup, appraisal and approval of the prefeasibility study, in line with prevailing regulations.

The council will disband as soon as it completes its task.

Earlier this week, the MPI unveiled a study for the transnational express railway project, putting the cost at US$26 billion. This cost was far lower than a scheme prepared by the MOT, which estimates the cost at US$58.7 billion.

In its plan, the MPI said the railway should have a designed train speed of 200 kilometers per hour, to be used for both cargo and passenger transport, while the MOT’s scheme targets a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour, and would be used to carry only passengers.

According to the MPI, the most efficient train speed should be limited to 200 kilometers per hour, as in most developed countries. The study was conducted by the ministry, with the involvement of experts from the Netherlands and Germany.

The MOT, in a measured response to the MPI report, defended its study, which it said was prepared by a group of researchers as project consultants.

In its statement on Tuesday, the MOT pointed out that it followed due process in preparing the study. As of January 2019, the ministry gained feedback from nine out of ten ministries and agencies, which largely approved the scheme.

VNS/SGT