Focus on investing in synchronous and modern transport infrastructure

Director of Department of Transport TRAN HUU HUNG answers interview

-Sir! Could you please tell us the progress of the transport infrastructure investment projects invested by the Department of Transport?

- The Department of Transport is being assigned by the Provincial People's Committee and the Ministry of Transport to be the investor of a number of important transport infrastructure projects. Specifically, the project of connecting the East branch of Ho Chi Minh Road with the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road. Up to now, the construction volume has reached nearly 40% of the contract volume.

For the remaining 6.4 km section connecting Vinh O commune, Vinh Linh district to Huong Lap commune, Huong Hoa district (including about 2 km through the strictly protected area of Bac Huong Hoa Nature Reserve), the investment capital is about 1,100 billion VND. The Department is studying technical solutions, consulting provincial leaders for approval to soon complete this section to break the monopoly of the region, serving socio -economic development.

Focus on investing in synchronous and modern transport infrastructure

Leaders of the Ministry of Transport and leaders of the Department of Transport inspect National Highway 15D - Photo: TU LINH

The Eastern Bypass Project of Dong Ha City, from Doc Mieu to Km10+187 on National Highway 9 to Cua Viet Port, 13.2 km long, has a total investment of VND 399.96 billion from the state budget in the medium-term public investment plan for the period 2021-2025.

The project was assigned by the Ministry of Transport to the Department of Transport as the investor. So far, the work of bomb and mine clearance, appraisal and approval of construction drawing design and project estimate has been completed. The Department of Transport is organizing the selection of construction contractors.

The 4.2 km long Eastern bypass project of Dong Ha City from Hieu River Bridge to Nguyen Hoang Street has a total investment of 230 billion VND from the central and provincial budgets. The handover of site clearance piles to the local authorities and the Dong Ha City Land Fund Development Center has been completed. The Department is coordinating with localities to carry out tasks related to site clearance for the project, ensuring implementation according to the set plan...

- Regarding key traffic projects, how is the province's motivation for the department to carry out state management work in the area being implemented, sir?

- In the past time, performing the functions and tasks of the specialized agency on transport in the province and the provisions of law, the Department of Transport has proactively and promptly advised the Ministry of Transport, the Provincial Party Committee, the Provincial People's Council, and the Provincial People's Committee in directing, operating, implementing investment in construction, management, and development of transport infrastructure in the province.

Along with the projects invested by the department, the department also performs state management in the area for the Quang Tri Airport Project in Gio Linh district. Recently, the Provincial People's Committee signed a decision approving the results of selecting investors to implement Component Project 2 to build the Airport under the Quang Tri Airport Construction Investment Project under the public-private partnership method. The consortium of T&T Transport Infrastructure Investment and Development Company Limited - CIENCO4 Group Joint Stock Company is the winning investor with a total investment of more than VND 5,821 billion. The launching ceremony of the Quang Tri Airport project was held on December 15.

For the My Thuy Port Construction Project, which has been successfully restructured, the investor plans to start construction in the first quarter of 2024 with the first item being the sea breakwater, striving to have 1 to 2 wharves to receive 1,000-ton ships by the end of 2025. For the Coastal Road Project connecting the East-West Economic Corridor, contractors are focusing on completing the 2023 work of building permanent bridges along the entire route and localities where the project passes through are accelerating site clearance work to start construction of the road in 2024.

- For Quang Tri province, the East-West transport infrastructure projects play a very important role. Could you please tell us about the progress of the implementation?

- Along with the North-South vertical transport system, the East-West horizontal transport infrastructure system has always received attention from provincial and central leaders to facilitate investment and implementation. The Cam Lo-Lao Bao Expressway Project with a length of nearly 60 km is an important project identified by the Politburo and the Prime Minister for investment before 2030.

Up to now, the pre-feasibility study report has been completed by Son Hai Group Company Limited. The Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee highly agrees with the contents of the project's pre-feasibility report and agrees to establish a steering committee and a working group to accompany the investor in implementing the next steps soon.

Regarding the National Highway 15D Construction Investment Project, based on the Prime Minister's concluding opinion at the inspection of the implementation of a number of key projects and works in Quang Tri province on July 22, 2023, the opinion of the National Assembly Chairman in the Conclusion Notice No. 1813/TBVPQH dated July 31, 2023 and the proposal of the Ministry of Transport, the Department has advised the Provincial People's Committee to submit a report to the Prime Minister.

Accordingly, the National Highway 15D section from National Highway 1 to the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road, about 42 km long, is assigned to the Provincial People's Committee as the competent state agency to call for investment under the public-private partnership model. The section from the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road to La Lay International Border Gate, 12 km long, will use World Bank loans and other legal sources to upgrade and expand; the project implementation period is expected from 2024 to 2028.

In addition, there is another important project, the Cross-Border Conveyor Belt Project to transport coal from Laos to Vietnam through the La Lay International Border Gate. After receiving comments from 8 ministries and branches, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs submitted a document to the Prime Minister requesting permission to build a cross-border conveyor belt system to facilitate the import of coal from Laos to Vietnam through the La Lay-Salavan International Border Gate pair.

The Department respectfully requests the Standing Committee of the Provincial People's Council and the Provincial People's Committee to work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to synthesize the opinions of ministries and branches, and promptly submit to the Government a decision on the policy to allow the construction of this system to facilitate the import of coal from Laos to Vietnam.

The Department is always aware that investment in transport infrastructure plays a particularly important role in the process of promoting socio-economic development, so it always maximizes its role and tasks with many effective implementation solutions; coordinates with agencies and localities to gradually resolve difficulties and obstacles to bring key projects and works to completion soon.

Hopefully, when the projects are put into operation, they will create a synchronous and modern traffic infrastructure system, contributing effectively to the sustainable development of the province.

Thank you!

Tu Linh (performed)

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