The Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway faces the risk of delays due to a shortage of sand and gravel.

Although land clearance has been completed, creating a favorable starting point, the project is currently facing a serious shortage of materials and immense time pressure, directly threatening its completion deadline.

Sand shortage, stone scarcity, and time pressure.

Photo caption — The scene at the meeting.

The Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway construction project, specifically the section passing through Can Tho city, spans nearly 74 km. Due to the unique geological characteristics of the area, the entire route relies entirely on materials from neighboring provinces such as An Giang , Dong Thap, and Vinh Long. Although contractors and representatives from relevant departments have proactively worked with each province to find suppliers, the amount of sand allocated to Can Tho has not yet met actual demand because these provinces also prioritize resources for local projects.

Surveys have revealed that some material quarries, despite being initially assigned with very large estimated reserves, fail to deliver the required volume or meet the technical standards for construction projects during actual extraction.

The Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang Expressway construction project, phase 1, components 2, 3, and 4, has a total length of approximately 132.47 km. The project has a total investment of VND 31,288.077 billion; the implementation period is from 2022 to 2027.

According to a report from the Can Tho City Investment and Construction Project Management Board for Transportation and Agriculture (hereinafter referred to as the Project Management Board), as of now, the total construction volume of all three component projects has only reached VND 11,249 billion out of a total of VND 19,790 billion, equivalent to 57% of the planned value. Specifically, component project 2 has reached 58%, component project 3 has reached 61%, and component project 4 has reached 54%. Regarding disbursement, only VND 694 billion out of a total of VND 4,563 billion (15%) of the planned capital for 2026 has been disbursed, although the cumulative disbursement rate for the entire project has reached 80% (equivalent to VND 15,828 billion) since the beginning of the project.

Mr. Phan Minh Tri, Deputy Director of the Project Management Board, acknowledged that the shortage of sand for leveling is the biggest challenge directly affecting the progress. The total estimated demand for leveling sand is 16.6 million m³, but the actual volume delivered to the construction site is only about 10.58 million m³, leaving a shortfall of approximately 6 million m³.

Along the entire route, approximately 6 km of road still cannot undergo surcharge loading due to a shortage of sand. The supply pressure during the upcoming peak period is extremely high: from now until the end of July 2026, component project 2 urgently needs 800,000 m³ of sand, while component project 4 continuously requires 2.5 million m³ of sand to complete the surcharge loading phase 1.

Beyond sand, the demand for stone materials for all three component projects amounts to over 4.1 million m³. Currently, the construction site has only received 878,000 m³, along with a commitment from Antraco quarry (An Giang) of over 1.6 million m³; the entire project is still short of nearly 2.5 million m³ of stone.

According to Chairman of the People's Committee of Can Tho City, Truong Canh Tuyen, this serious shortage affects the technical aspects and construction time of the project. According to the procedure, mandatory loading requires 6 to 15 months for consolidation settlement before the conditions are met to remove the load and begin construction of the road foundation.

This means that if sand is not supplied to begin loading in July or August 2026, the overall project schedule is at risk of falling behind. Previously, the project was expected to be completed in 2026, after which the National Assembly extended the completion deadline to June 2027. However, with the current construction speed and material supply, achieving the goal of technical opening in July 2027 and official operation by the end of 2027 is proving to be an enormous challenge.

Besides time pressure, the continuous increase in raw material prices since the beginning of the year is also creating a heavy financial burden for both local authorities and construction units. Many contractors are running out of cash flow and facing difficulties in mobilizing materials for subsequent phases.

Overcoming obstacles and bringing the project to completion.

During the meeting, representatives from major contractors frankly pointed out the practical difficulties and made specific proposals. Lieutenant Colonel Truong Xuan Thanh, Deputy Director of the Truong Son 12 Project Management Board (Truong Son Construction Corporation, Ministry of National Defense) - the unit currently constructing 10km under package 11 (Component Project 4) - stated that the unit is facing a shortage of over 300,000 m³ of leveling sand. The contractor has completed a submission to Vinh Long province requesting the transfer of a total of 270,000 m³ of sand from three mines (Luc Si Thanh, Phu Thanh, and Tan Binh 2).

However, the major difficulty currently is the single-lane service road with low load capacity, hindering the coordination of transporting large volumes of materials. The Truong Son contractor requested that the leaders of Can Tho city contact the People's Committee of Vinh Long province to expedite the legal procedures for transferring sand, and also support the expansion of material storage areas.

Meanwhile, Mr. Phan Duong, Director of the Project Management Board of Trung Nam Construction and Installation Joint Stock Company, reported on the "crisis" of stone materials. Despite proactively seeking alternative sources besides the Antraco quarry (An Giang province), the Thuong Tan quarry refused to deliver even after receiving a deposit (prioritizing projects in Ho Chi Minh City). It is estimated that the project will face a shortage of over 300,000 m³ of stone in this phase and a further 330,000 m³ next year for crushed stone aggregate and asphalt concrete.

Trung Nam Construction Company has requested that Can Tho City urgently work with An Giang Province to support the allocation of additional stone resources. From an economic perspective, the contractors also unanimously requested that the investor promptly consider adjusting unit prices, implementing direct compensation through VAT invoices, and quickly approving specific unit prices for embankment sand to address the cash flow issue.

Mr. Hoang Quang Tam, Deputy General Director of Dinh An Group Company (the unit currently under significant pressure in bidding packages 11, 13, and 14), also requested that relevant agencies and departments simplify administrative procedures so that contractors can quickly access the sand mines in An Giang that are seeking extensions.

Acknowledging the shortcomings, Chairman of the People's Committee of Can Tho City, Truong Canh Tuyen, frankly pointed out that the subjective reasons leading to the project's stagnation were due to the very weak coordination between departments and agencies with the investor, between the investor and contractors, and among contractors within the same consortium.

To ensure progress, the head of the Can Tho city government requested that contractors urgently review and revise the detailed schedule, adhering closely to two key deadlines: technical opening to traffic by July 30, 2027, and official operation by December 31, 2027. Units need to proactively manage surplus and shortage of materials within their consortiums, flexibly share supplies from neighboring projects, and submit written proposals to the city for procedural support.

Regarding the material procurement issue, Mr. Truong Canh Tuyen issued a series of directives. Concerning inter-provincial coordination, he instructed the City People's Committee Office to take the lead in coordinating with the Department of Agriculture and Environment to urgently prepare official documents to be sent to the People's Committees of Vinh Long and An Giang provinces for discussion, resolution of obstacles, and acceleration of the material allocation process.

Regarding sand mines that are behind schedule, the Chairman of the City People's Committee has instructed the Office of the People's Committee to consult with the judicial sector to finalize the procedures for establishing a Post-Inspection Team (chaired by the Department of Agriculture and Environment) to review all sand mines currently facing difficulties, and to report the results no later than June 10th.

Specifically, based on the results of the post-inspection, the city will resolutely implement the plan to definitively reclaim the MS04 sand mine (which has been stalled since the end of last year). Since this mine already has available exploration data, Can Tho will apply a streamlined process to directly assign it to a capable mining unit, serving the entire demand of approximately 4 million cubic meters of sand for the second phase of the project, determined to complete the key components before July.

Regarding finances, the Chairman of the City People's Committee requested the Project Management Board to closely coordinate with contractors to verify actual work volume for timely acceptance and payment. Material price adjustments must be fair and transparent, based accurately on the price list at each point in time and the construction log. The Departments of Finance, Construction, Agriculture and Environment are responsible for providing technical support and authority to the investor in the process of approving these price adjustments to facilitate cash flow for contractors.

Chairman Truong Canh Tuyen emphasized that this is a key national project, requiring the utmost consensus and determination from all parties. Regarding matters within the local government's jurisdiction, the City People's Committee is ready to create the most favorable conditions to resolve any obstacles for the contractor, determined to achieve the goal of completing the project on schedule.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/kinh-te/cao-toc-chau-doc-can-tho-soc-trang-doi-mat-nguy-co-cham-tien-do-vi-thieu-cat-da-20260527201432514.htm