Workers are seen on an elevated section of Metro Line No.1, which links Ben Thanh Market in District 1 and Suoi Tien Theme Park in District 9 in HCMC

The HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways of HCMC (MAUR) released a report on the execution of Metro Line No.1, which links Ben Thanh Market in District 1 and Suoi Tien Theme Park in District 

9, and on Metro Line No.2, which connects Ben Thanh Market and Tham Luong Depot in District 12.

MAUR identified capital adjustment procedures as a major obstacle to the big-ticket projects.

The authority cited the viewpoints of the appraisal council for the metro line projects, reporting that site clearance had been divided into subprojects, but for the assessment of the projects’ capital effectiveness
and balance, the council had asked MAUR to include the subprojects in the total investment revision.

MAUR floated two plans. The first one was to reduce the costs of land acquisition, technical infrastructure and project management, alongside other costs, to make up for the shortage in value added tax
(VAT).

The second plan was to maintain land acquisition costs and increase associated funds for total investment adjustments to cover the VAT shortage and reduce dependence on official development assistance
loans.

For Metro Line No.2, the appraisal council agreed on some assessment criteria involving basic design and total investment.

MAUR is also working with consultants to update the requirements for project adjustments and is coordinating with the HCMC Department of Transport to write an appraisal report on the project’s adjustments.

Speaking at a recent meeting, HCMC Vice Chairman Vo Van Hoan called for the completion of documents on the total investment revisions of the two metro line projects.

Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line, on which construction started in August 2012, stretches across 19.7 kilometers of land, mostly above ground, and connects the city center with its eastern districts and the
outlying district of Di An in neighboring Binh Duong Province.

Funding for the metro line has been raised to over VND47.3 trillion (US$2.04 billion) from the original VND17.3 trillion in 2009.

Also, Ben Thanh-Tham Luong metro line, on which work is slated to start in 2021, has seen its investment requirements rise to VND48.8 trillion from the original VND26 trillion. SGT

Adjustments proposed for HCM City’s metro line projects

The HCM City People’s Committee has instructed the Management Board of Urban Railway (MAUR) to send the changes to the first two metro lines’ cost estimates to the city's People’s Council for approval.