HCMC – The total investment in the HCMC-Moc Bai expressway project, linking HCMC and neighboring Tay Ninh Province, has been estimated to increase by nearly VND2.3 trillion due to a higher site clearance cost.
According to the HCMC Department of Transport’s report on the execution of the project sent to the municipal government on May 18, the prefeasibility study for the project has been completed, news site VnExpress reported.
Accordingly, the investment for the project was estimated at VND15.9 trillion, up some VND2.3 trillion over the figure in the previous estimation and VND5.2 trillion versus the figure announced in 2019.
The investment hike was attributed to an increase in the cost of the site clearance work for the project and compensation for the affected households. The cost has increased from VND5.1 trillion to over VND7.4 trillion, including over VND5.9 trillion for the section in HCMC and the remaining for the section in Tay Ninh.
The project will be submitted to the HCMC People’s Council for approval at its sitting in July.
The HCMC-Moc Bai expressway project was designed to have a total length of 53 kilometers, starting at Ring Road No. 3 in HCMC’s Cu Chi District and ending at the Tay Ninh’s Moc Bai Border Gate Economic Zone.
In October last year, the Government allowed the HCMC government to take charge of the project, which will be executed under the public private partnership format with a build-operate-transfer contract.
The road, which will have four lanes in the first phase, is expected to be opened to traffic in 2025. The capital poured into the project is expected to be recovered 23 years and eight months after the project is put into use.
Once in place, the expressway will help improve the traffic system in the southern key economic zone, increase the capacity of a road connecting HCMC and Cambodia and ease traffic on National Highway 22.
