HCMC – The construction deadline for the half-done Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway in southern Vietnam has been extended to September 30, 2025, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
The initial deadline for the expressway was 2023, but financing problems have led to a suspension of the project.
In light of this, the Government has decided to extend the deadline and revise the total cost of the project down by VND1.24 trillion to around VND30.07 trillion.
Funding for the project comes from various sources, including a loan of VND8 trillion from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), VND10.5 trillion from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), reciprocal capital of VND3.8 trillion, and VND7.5 trillion self-arranged by the Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC).
The Ministry of Transport has been instructed to work with relevant agencies to facilitate necessary procedures for capital allocation and contract adjustments to ensure the completion of the project within the extended deadline.
HCMC and Dong Nai Province have also been urged to expedite land clearance and hand over cleared land to contractors in the third quarter of this year.
The Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway is nearly 58 kilometers long and connects HCMC with the neighboring provinces of Dong Nai and Long An.
Work on the project began in 2014 with an initial completion target of 2019. However, a shortage of capital led to the project’s suspension in 2019. The Government had previously extended the deadline to December 2023.
