The announcement highlighted that the Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Transport to consult the investment policy for the expansion project from July 2023; research and propose the investment.
During the research and proposal process for adjusting the road network planning for the 2021-2025 period with a vision to 2050, the Ministry of Transport selected and assigned the investor to propose the project and build a pre-feasibility study report.
However, the implementation of the directives from the Government leadership has been slower than required due to objective reasons such as waiting for the effective of the Road Law on January 1, 2025. Therefore, the Government required the Ministry of Transport to urgently proceed with the next steps to start the project in the second quarter of 2025.
As for investment scale, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha agreed with the proposals of the Ministry of Transport and the investor. However, the Ministry of Transport and the investor need to discuss further with relevant localities to select the optimal investment scale, ensuring feasibility and avoiding short-term traffic congestion.
The Ministry of Transport and the project investor proposed the project expansion and consultancy for the creation of forecasting data, especially traffic volumes of vehicles.
Regarding the competent authority for implementing the project under the PPP method, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha suggested that the Ministry of Transport work with the People's Committee of Tien Giang Province or relevant localities. If consensus is reached on which locality will serve as the competent authority as directed by the Prime Minister, a decision will be submitted to the Prime Minister in January 2025 based on the spirit of ensuring convenience and capacity for organizing and implementing the project as soon as possible.
Regarding the selection of investors, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha assigned the Ministry of Transport to preside over and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to propose a plan for investor selection according to regulations, ensuring that the chosen investor must meet all capacities and experience requirements to implement the project as soon as possible.
The Ministry of Transport has already submitted a plan to the Prime Minister to adjust the planning of the Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong Expressway section to a scale of 10 to 12 lanes.
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha assigned the Ministry of Transport to receive the opinions and comments of the leaders of the Ministry of Planning and Investment and urgently coordinate with relevant localities to develop a land clearance project according to the planning scale; and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to balance funds for immediate implementation, avoiding additional costs and facilitating investment.
