(Illustrative photo)
For the Dau Giay-Phan Thiet expressway project, the Ministry of Planning and Investment has issued a decision to use over VND2.4 trillion of government bonds to fund the project under the 2016-2020 medium-term public investment plan. Of this amount, the project will receive over VND1.1 trillion for this year.
Dau Giay-Phan Thiet, part of the North-South expressway project, requires more than VND14.3 trillion in capital. Starting from Binh Thuan Province, it will run 99 kilometers and connect with the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway.
Meanwhile, the Hoa Binh-Moc Chau Expressway project is some 85 kilometers long, stretching from Hoa Binh City to National Highway 43 in Son La Province.
The road system will link two tourism hubs of the northwestern region. It is also expected to ease congestion on National Highway No.6 through Hoa Binh and Son La, while contributing to the overall socio-economic development of the two provinces.
As planned, the expressway will allow direct travel from Hanoi to Moc Chau. Built at a total cost of over 22.29 trillion VND (952.05 million USD), the road will allow vehicles to travel at 60-80 km per hour.
The construction work is set to start this year and finished by 2024, under public-private-partnership (PPP) format.
In relation to funding, the project’s investor will mobilize capital of some VND17.2 trillion to construct a build-operate-transfer section during the first phase and aims to recover the capital through toll collection over 26 years, starting from 2025.
The remaining VND5 trillion ($214 million) will be funded by the government in the form of land in the two Northern provinces Hoa Binh and Son La to pay the project investor, in line with prevailing regulations.
Under the design, the 85-kilometer expressway will have four lanes. In addition, two emergency lanes will be built later.
Once completed, the expressway will link up with the Hoa Lac – Hoa Binh expressway connecting Hanoi with Hoa Binh, which opened to traffic in October 2018, cutting travel time down to one hour.
The northwestern region consists of 12 mountainous and midland localities, including Yen Bai, Lao Cai, Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Son La, Ha Giang, and Hoa Binh.
It is the most disadvantaged area compared with other regions and has the highest rate of poor households. The biggest challenges for the region includes poor transport infrastructure and a lack of basic foundations for the development of railway and air travel. Given the current situation, the development of road transport infrastructure was considered the most suitable option.
