Implementing the expansion of Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh Expressway under emergency construction project

A section of the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay expressway is currently operated by VEC.

The Government Office has just issued công văn (official letter) No. 5889/VPCP-CN to the Minister of Finance; Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director of Vietnam Expressway Investment and Development Corporation (VEC) conveying the directives of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha regarding the implementation of the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh Expressway expansion project.

Accordingly, the Deputy Prime Minister agreed with the proposal of the Ministry of Finance and VEC on implementing the project according to the procedures for urgent projects to start construction on August 19, 2025.

The implementation of urgent projects to select consultants, select contractors to implement the project and simultaneously carry out a number of steps as reported by the Ministry of Finance and VEC must ensure compliance with scientific and technical bases, select consultants and contractors who are experienced, capable, reputable, have implemented similar projects and works with good quality, safe construction, and must not allow loopholes, corruption, group interests, causing loss and damage to state assets.

The Deputy Prime Minister instructed the Ministry of Finance and VEC to clarify the reasons for the necessity and urgency of the project in terms of its economic, social, and political significance, as well as the commencement and completion timelines. He noted that VEC must commit to completing the project on schedule and at a lower cost than similar bidding packages, thus saving the state budget; and report to the Deputy Prime Minister before June 27, 2025.

Previously, to ensure the project was essentially completed by 2026, based on VEC's proposal, in document No. 8029/BTC-ĐT, the Ministry of Finance recommended to the Prime Minister, based on the provisions of point b, clause 1 and clause 3, Article 130 of the Construction Law No. 50/2014/QH13, as amended by clause 48, Article 1 of Law No. 62/2020/QH14, to allow VEC to invest in expanding the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh expressway section in the form of an emergency construction project.

VEC carries out the following procedures in parallel: survey, project establishment; construction drawing design, estimate; contractor selection; construction... and other necessary work to implement the Project; applying the shortened bidding process, according to Article 78 of Decree No. 24/2024/ND-CP dated February 27, 2024 of the Government detailing a number of articles and measures to implement the Law on Bidding on contractor selection.

According to VEC, applying the form of emergency construction works and special mechanisms and support mechanisms for the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh Expressway expansion project will bring many advantages in shortening the progress.

Specifically, according to the procedures and legal regulations on public investment, construction, and bidding, to implement the Project (even when applying the contractor selection method in special cases), it is still necessary to go through 3 steps: approval of investment policy; approval of project; approval of construction drawings and cost estimates as the basis for selecting the construction contractor.

Meanwhile, the critical path of the Project's progress is the preparation, appraisal and approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report, as the Project passes through two provinces (under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment).

If implemented according to normal procedures, the Project can only start construction on November 1, 2025, basically completed in December 2026, and Long Thanh Bridge will be completed and put into use in June 2027.

This progress is significantly behind schedule compared to the completion time of Long Thanh International Airport, as well as the deadline set by the government leadership.

In case the Prime Minister permits the application of the form of emergency construction works and permits the application of special mechanisms and support mechanisms to accelerate progress, the Project does not have to approve the investment policy; immediately deploy the survey work, prepare the Feasibility Study Report and site clearance work.

The survey and design of construction drawings (2 steps) will be carried out in parallel with the approval of the Project; the approval of construction drawings for each construction item will be carried out to organize implementation right at the construction site, both designing and constructing.

In particular, selecting a construction contractor at the same time as creating construction drawings will help shorten the construction start time and complete the project sooner.

According to VEC, with these "opening" mechanisms, the Project can be approved on July 24, 2025; construction drawings for each part/item of the project can be approved from August 8, 2025; construction contractors can be selected on August 13, 2025; and construction can start on August 19, 2025.

If everything goes smoothly, the section from the Ring Road 2 intersection to the Ring Road 3 intersection (Km4+000 - Km8+844.5) will be constructed within 13 months, completed in September 2026. The section from the Ring Road 3 intersection to the intersection with Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway (Km8+844.5 - Km25+920), excluding Long Thanh Bridge, will be constructed within 14 months, completed in October 2026.

As for Long Thanh Bridge (Km11+428.75 - Km13+747.25), due to its very large scale, it will take 20 months to construct. The main bridge is expected to be completed in December 2026 and the remaining items will be completed in March 2027.

“Thus, if the Project is implemented in the form of an emergency construction project and some special mechanisms and support mechanisms are applied, the time will be shortened by 2.5 months to start construction on August 19, 2025; basically completed in 2026, about 3 months shorter than the normal investment procedure,” said Mr. Truong Viet Dong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of VEC.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/trien-khai-mo-rong-cao-toc--tphcm---long-thanh-theo-cong-trinh-xay-dung-khan-cap-d314818.html