HCMC – The State Audit of Vietnam has proposed cutting the estimated costs of 12 sections of the 729-kilometer North-South expressway project in the 2021-2025 period by VND16.33 trillion.
SAV has calculated the investment cost of each kilometer of the expressway at VND152.9 billion, lower than the VND175 billion, excluding the cost for site clearance, proposed by the Government, the local media reported.
The Government, at a session of the National Assembly on January 4, proposed developing the 729-kilometer expressway in the 2021-2025 period, using the State budget. The project requires an estimated VND147 trillion, including VND95.8 trillion for construction and equipment, VND19 trillion for site clearance and resettlement, VND12 trillion for project management, consulting and other expenditures, and VND20 trillion for backup.
Meanwhile, SAV projected the investment at over VND130.6 trillion, including VND89.1 trillion for construction and equipment, nearly VND19.1 trillion for site clearance, over VND6 trillion for project management and some VND16.4 trillion for backup.
SAV’s calculation was based on the investment figures in previous projects. For example, the investment in the 101-kilometer Vinh Hao-Phan Thiet section was nearly VND10.9 trillion, or VND107.5 billion per kilometer.
In addition, the 78.5-kilometer Cam Lam-Vinh Hao section and the 100-kilometer Phan Thiet-Dau Giay section require an investment of VND9.6 trillion and VND12.6 trillion, or VND122.6 billion and VND125.8 billion per kilometer, respectively.
Therefore, SAV proposed the Government direct the Ministry of Transport and other relevant agencies to review the investment in the project, referring to the investment in the first phase of the My Thuan-Can Tho Expressway to ensure the allocation of capital for the project and complete it in 2025.
As for the Government’s proposal to use State funding for the project, the Government must assess the possibility of capital allocation in line with the progress of the project and the legal foundation for the toll collection. At present, the Government has yet to issue specific regulations on the collection of toll fees for expressways funded by the State.
In addition, detailed plans on the transfer of the toll collection right must be worked out.
