Expectations for the Ho Chi Minh City high-speed railway.

The company commits to securing 85% of the funding.

CT Group has just submitted a proposal to the Government to implement the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho high-speed railway line under the public-private partnership (PPP) model. Besides information on the route and station planning similar to the plan already reported to the Ministry of Transport by the TEDI SOUTH - TRICC - TEDI consulting consortium, CT Group plans to form a consortium with the China Bridge and Road Construction Corporation and the China Electric Construction Corporation. Simultaneously, they are studying agreements to receive financial support packages for the project from major financial institutions such as the World Bank (WB), China Construction Bank, and the State Bank of China to ensure funding for the project. Of the total estimated investment of US$9.98 billion (over VND 242,000 billion), the consortium will contribute 85%, and the state approximately 15%.

Furthermore, this enterprise proposes a comprehensive development plan for 12 station urban areas along the route using the TOD (Transit-Oriented Development) model, shortening the payback period from 50 years to 25 years and fostering development in the provinces and cities. Each station would then be a modern structure reflecting the unique character of each province. Within a 500-meter radius of the station would be a commercial and service belt, residential areas, and technology zones; the outer 10-kilometer radius would encompass logistics and high-tech agriculture , all aligned with a green urban development orientation.

The high-speed railway, once completed, will contribute to a breakthrough in the Mekong Delta region's economy .

According to CT Group's leadership, during discussions with shareholders who have experience in successful railway projects in Malaysia (also the unit that built the railway connecting Malaysia and Singapore) and the World Bank, World Bank experts advised that the high-speed rail project could only succeed if transportation and industrial/commercial zones around the transportation axis were developed in a coordinated manner. Focusing solely on transportation would be financially unfeasible. Therefore, CT Group proactively structured a joint venture with all the necessary components to perform modular functions within such an economic structure.

"The Mekong Delta has a unique geographical location, being one of the most valuable deltas in the world, with favorable weather conditions and fertile land. However, people from the Mekong Delta still leave to work elsewhere. The Mekong Delta has enormous potential and still has much room for development in terms of transportation, economy, and social infrastructure. However, because we don't have the resources to do everything at once, we need to prioritize. The Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho high-speed railway will bring breakthroughs and development to the Mekong Delta region, transforming it," the CT Group leader expressed his expectations.

The fact that businesses have guaranteed capital contributions of up to 85% of the total investment has opened up a huge opportunity to make the "dream" of a high-speed railway for the people of the Mekong Delta a reality; because previously, the leaders of the Ministry of Transport had also acknowledged that funding was one of the biggest challenges of the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho high-speed railway project in particular, as well as the completion of infrastructure in the Mekong Delta region in general. According to the Ministry of Transport, the need for investment in transportation infrastructure development nationwide is very large. The list of projects expected to be invested in from 2026 - 2030 is approximately 200,000 billion VND. After this period, a public investment plan after 2030 must be developed, which will consider capital needs, investment forms, etc. The Mekong Delta region also has the unique characteristic of a highly fragmented terrain and weak geological conditions due to the numerous rivers and canals. Large projects often require additional treatment of weak geological conditions, making the investment cost of transportation infrastructure projects very high. Therefore, despite the large amount of money spent, the number of projects, the length of the routes, and the scale remain modest. Given these characteristics, the Ministry of Transport, when studying projects, hopes to find good projects that can attract investment from society in the context of the country's limited resources.

"However, for the Mekong Delta region, choosing a financially viable project is also very difficult. The Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho railway is 174 km long, but preliminary calculations show that the investment capital will reach over 7 billion USD, equivalent to nearly 170,000 billion VND, which is very large. Therefore, developing industrial zones and projects around the railway line to support investment activities and improve the financial feasibility of the project is very reasonable," a leader of the Ministry of Transport stated.

Regional economic breakthrough

According to the plan currently being studied by the Ministry of Transport, the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho high-speed railway will be a double-track line, using the standard 1,435 mm gauge, with a design speed of approximately 190 km/hour for passenger trains and 120 km/hour for freight trains. Thus, upon completion, the travel time from Can Tho to Ho Chi Minh City will only take 75-80 minutes.

The consulting unit assessed that the railway has outstanding advantages compared to other modes of transport. A double-track line with a 1,435 mm gauge has a transport capacity equivalent to 10 10-lane express highways. It is a high-capacity, safe, and punctual means of transport, and can facilitate the development of integrated urban transport around passenger and freight stations (TOD model). Meanwhile, traffic density along the corridor in the Southeast and Mekong Delta regions is projected to be very high, reaching approximately 27 million passengers per day and 54 million tons of freight per day by 2055, but current transport methods cannot meet this demand. This is a bottleneck hindering the development of the Mekong Delta region. Therefore, before 2034, this high-speed railway line must be established to alleviate transport pressure, meet transport needs, and promote socio-economic development of the entire southern key economic region.

According to the plan, the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho railway line will start from Binh Duong (An Binh station) to Can Tho (Can Tho station), passing through 6 provinces and cities with a total length of 174 km.

When working with the Ministry of Transport and the provinces and cities on this project, the Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, Phan Van Mai, also stated that the project should be approached from the perspective that transportation must come first, guiding the opening of roads to create space for development, contributing to the development orientation of the Mekong Delta region, and creating new impetus for the economy of the entire southern key region. From there, the necessity of this project can be properly assessed. With this approach, Mr. Phan Van Mai believes that it is necessary to urgently implement the project early, completing the basic documentation before 2025, and carrying out the project in the period 2025-2030. The Ho Chi Minh City leadership also supports calling for social investment and the formation of urban stations along the route. Urban station models are very important, helping to reshape the city, restructure the population and restructure infrastructure for production and services, thereby providing resources for project implementation.

As someone who previously served as the project manager for the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho high-speed railway line, Mr. Ha Ngoc Truong, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Association of Bridges, Roads and Ports, affirmed that this is a project of significant importance. With businesses showing interest and committing to financing, implementation should be expedited. Upon completion, the project will bring enormous economic, cultural, and social benefits to the entire southern economic region. Ho Chi Minh City is the center of the southern key economic region in the Southeast, while Can Tho City is the center of the Mekong Delta key economic region and the gateway to the Southwest region. Forecasts by the JICA (Japan) research team indicate that by 2030, passenger transport volume on the Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho corridor will increase 4.8 times compared to 2008, and freight transport volume will also increase 3 times. Investing in the construction of a railway connecting two major economic centers is necessary to serve economic development, security, and national defense.

"Developed countries like Japan and South Korea place great emphasis on developing high-speed rail, a mode of transport that can compete with air and road transport. Traveling from Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho will only take 75-80 minutes, creating excellent conditions for trade, economic development, and inter-regional cultural exchange. Simultaneously, the large volume of transport will significantly reduce traffic congestion, road overload, emissions, and environmental pollution."

Mr. Ha Ngoc Truong , Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Association of Bridges, Roads and Ports.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/ky-vong-duong-sat-cao-toc-tphcm-can-tho-185240108225634629.htm