Highway contractors are still facing difficulties due to a shortage of crushed stone.

With many highway projects scheduled for completion in 2025, the risk of stone material shortages remains ever-present. In many localities, even though stone prices have increased significantly compared to initial estimates, contractors still cannot obtain them.

Supply is scarce, and purchase prices are soaring.

At the Hoai Nhon - Quy Nhon project, Colonel Nguyen Tuan Anh, Deputy General Director of Truong Son Construction Corporation, said that the project is only about six months away from completion. However, the biggest concern currently is the supply of stone materials for asphalt concrete construction.

Construction of the roadbed for the Quảng Ngãi - Hoài Nhơn section of the expressway is underway.

For the crushed stone base layer, the contractor can utilize crushed stone. However, the stone used for asphalt concrete must be purchased entirely.

According to calculations, the volume of asphalt concrete to be constructed on the more than 23km main route undertaken by the enterprise is approximately 220,000 tons, requiring 140,000 m3 of crushed stone to be stockpiled. To date, the contractor has only stockpiled 35,000 m3 (approximately 25%).

Notably, the stone in the Binh Dinh area did not meet the standards due to insufficient adhesion, forcing the contractor to purchase it from Nhon Hoi (Quang Ngai) or Cam Lam - Khanh Hoa , with a transportation distance of 110-350km, significantly increasing costs.

Previously, since the end of 2024, the difficulty in sourcing stone for the Hoai Nhon - Quy Nhon expressway project was also mentioned by Phuc Loc Group. According to the contractor's representative, the company had to go to other provinces to find stone sources, including surveying quarries in Quang Binh and Khanh Hoa.

For the 7km main route under construction, Phuc Loc needs approximately 100,000m3 of stone, with an initial estimated cost of around 300,000 VND/m3 (in the Binh Dinh area).

However, the plan changed, requiring the stone to be purchased from Khanh Hoa, increasing the price per cubic meter to 600,000 - 700,000 VND. Despite potentially incurring losses, the contractor still accepted the purchase to ensure the project's progress and quality.

Even with money, it's not easy to buy.

The shortage of crushed stone due to the inability to utilize materials from tunnel excavation (geological changes compared to the design), and the increased need for commercially purchased materials are among the main reasons why the contractor's construction plan for the Chi Thanh - Van Phong and Quang Ngai - Hoai Nhon sections of the expressway has not met expectations.

The contractor for the Quang Ngai - Hoai Nhon expressway project had to purchase stone at prices 30-50% higher than the bid price in order to have stone for construction.

According to Mr. Ngo Truong Nam, General Director of Deo Ca Group, the total stone requirement for the Chi Thanh - Van Phong project is 530,000 m3. Due to changes in the tunnel's geological conditions compared to the design, the amount of commercially purchased stone increased by approximately 200,000 m3.

In the Quang Ngai - Hoai Nhon project, the total demand is approximately 1.93 million m3. Changes in tunnel geology compared to the design resulted in an increase of 760,000 m3 in the amount of commercially purchased rock.

"We are having to buy stone at prices 30-50% higher than the bid price. This situation requires authorities to expedite the licensing process for new quarries and increase the capacity of existing ones," Mr. Nam said.

Included in the group of projects scheduled for completion in 2025, the Hoa Lien - Tuy Loan project is also facing the risk of delays due to insufficient stone supply.

Leading the consortium of contractors for the project, a representative from Truong Son Construction Corporation stated that, according to calculations, the company's stone requirement is approximately 200,000 cubic meters. After a long period of implementation, only about 30% of the required volume has been stockpiled.

"After working with relevant ministries, agencies, and contractors, Da Nang City has agreed to increase the capacity of some mines, but the procedures are very complicated."

"At the project construction site, quarry owners are reluctant to supply stone for the highway construction due to the higher technical requirements. The option of purchasing stone from Hue and Quang Nam is also being considered. However, the cost would increase significantly due to the long distance," a representative from Truong Son informed.

In addition to supply shortages, the contractor for the Hoa Lien - Tuy Loan expressway also faces a major obstacle: the announced material prices at local quarries do not accurately reflect actual market prices.

For example, the contract price for D37 stone material is only 152,000 VND/m3, the local price is announced as 182,000 VND, and the actual price offered by the quarry owner is 236,000 VND, but even that is unavailable.

Identify specific needs

According to Mr. Nguyen The Minh, Deputy Director of the Construction Investment Management Department, it is expected that approximately 1,188km of expressways under 28 projects will be completed by 2025.

Of these, projects in the North and Central regions have basically secured the supply of stone materials, meeting construction schedules. Projects in the South, such as Can Tho - Ca Mau, Bien Hoa - Vung Tau, Ho Chi Minh City's Ring Road 3, and Long Thanh International Airport, are still facing many difficulties.

The stone required for the four aforementioned projects is approximately 14 million cubic meters. Currently, contractors have mobilized 3.45 million cubic meters. The remaining volume that needs to be mobilized is about 10.25 million cubic meters.

Stone resources in the region are only found in a few localities such as An Giang, Kien Giang, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, and Ba Ria - Vung Tau. Among them, the Antraco quarry in An Giang has very good quality stone but has ceased operations since June 2024 due to the expiration of its license, and has not resumed mining since then.

Dong Nai province has the largest reserves of stone capable of supplying large-scale projects among the provinces in the region. However, the supply capacity is still limited due to factors such as transportation waiting times and the actual mining capacity of each quarry.

The Construction Investment Management Department advised the Ministry of Transport to report to the Prime Minister on the difficulties regarding the supply of stone materials. The Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to work directly with Dong Nai province to guide the resolution of obstacles related to mining procedures.

On February 13, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha chaired a working group to directly work with An Giang province to guide the province in resolving difficulties and obstacles in granting permission to resume mining operations at the Antraco mine. The province is expected to complete the procedures in February.

The Ministry of Transport has also requested investors to specifically identify the stone needs of each project, propose suitable quarries, and register their usage requirements with Dong Nai province to supply the projects according to the construction schedule.

According to Mr. Nguyen The Minh, Deputy Director of the Construction Investment Management Department, it is projected that by 2025, approximately 1,188km of expressways will be completed under 28 projects (17 projects with 889km managed by the Ministry of Transport, and 11 projects with 299km managed by local authorities).

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/nha-thau-cao-toc-van-gap-kho-vi-thieu-da-192250217223802061.htm