A 2-lane section of Noi Bai - Lao Cai expressway invested by VEC.

The Government Office has just issued Official Dispatch No. 7515/VPCP – CN to the Ministers of Transport, Finance, and Planning and Investment, conveying the direction of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha on the investment plan and upgrading of the expressway routes to a complete scale.

Accordingly, the Deputy Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Transport, based on the opinions of the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Capital Management Committee at Enterprises, to review the list of projects to upgrade and expand expressways of different scales (in operation, under investment) to reach the scale of complete expressways, in accordance with design standards and transportation needs (in which the earliest investment should be focused on expressways of 2 lanes).

On that basis, the Ministry of Transport will coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment to synthesize investment capital needs and report to competent authorities in the process of proposing the issuance of government bonds for key national projects.

The Deputy Prime Minister also assigned the Ministry of Transport to complete investment procedures for projects that are expected to balance additional central budget capital to upgrade and expand the La Son - Hoa Lien, Cam Lo - La Son, Cao Bo - Mai Son projects, and soon deploy expansion to meet demand; including submitting to competent authorities for approval of the investment policy for the North - South Expressway expansion project in the East, Cam Lo - La Son section in October 2024.

The Ministry of Transport is also responsible for reviewing the recommendations of the State Capital Management Committee at Enterprises on the implementation of investment in upgrading and expanding expressways managed by the Vietnam Expressway Corporation - VEC in accordance with the law, reporting to competent authorities for matters beyond its authority; to be completed before October 30, 2024.

The Ministry of Finance is assigned to urgently preside over and coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to unify and complete the report content and propose the issuance of government bonds for key national projects under the direction of the Government and the Prime Minister, including supplementing the need for investment capital and upgrading the expressway routes to a complete scale.

“The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall proactively coordinate closely with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Transport and relevant agencies in the implementation of the above tasks,” the Deputy Prime Minister directed.

Previously, in early June 2024, the Ministry of Planning and Investment issued Official Dispatch No. 4243/BKHĐT-PTHTĐT requesting the head of the Government to allow the issuance of a government bond package of about VND 165,000 billion to invest in transport infrastructure projects.

In particular, the Ministry of Transport is assigned to prioritize investment in expanding limited 4-lane and complete 4-lane expressway projects on the North-South expressway according to the planning scale, ensuring to meet the actual future passenger and cargo transport needs with a long-term vision of over 20 years.

The Minister of Planning and Investment also proposed that the Ministry of Transport urgently complete investment procedures for projects that have been planned to balance additional budget capital to upgrade the La Son - Hoa Lien and Cam Lo - La Son expressways (currently with a scale of 2 lanes); Cao Bo - Mai Son (4 limited lanes), and soon expand to meet demand.

The Ministry of Transport also needs to urgently complete the study of the investment plan to expand the Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong - My Thuan section under the PPP method, report to the competent authority for consideration and decision, clearly reporting on the advantages and difficulties of investing under the PPP method.

In Official Dispatch No. 4243/BKHĐT-PTHTĐT, the Ministry of Planning and Investment proposed that the Prime Minister assign the Ministry of Transport to learn from experience in calculating and forecasting traffic volume when proposing investment in expressway projects with a scale of 2 lanes and a phased scale, which must now be proposed for expansion as soon as they are put into operation; at the same time, review the planning scale, actual demand, traffic forecast, ensuring a long-term vision of 20 years for the routes leading to and from the gateways of major cities such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

“If necessary, the Ministry of Transport shall report to the Prime Minister to adjust the planning, as a basis for developing appropriate investment plans for upgrading and expansion, and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and relevant agencies to synthesize investment needs to report to competent authorities for permission to issue government bond packages to invest in transport projects,” Official Dispatch No. 4243/BKHĐT-PTHTĐT stated.

Along with the main responsibility of the Ministry of Transport in upgrading the diverging expressways, the Ministry of Planning and Investment recommends that the head of the Government assign the State Capital Management Committee at Enterprises to direct VEC to study and propose specific plans to expand the expressways: Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay; Hanoi - Lao Cai (Yen Bai - Lao Cai section), Cau Gie - Ninh Binh (to synchronize with the scale of the Phap Van - Cau Gie and Cao Bo - Mai Son sections after being expanded to 6 lanes), report to the Prime Minister on the above projects, in which it is necessary to clarify the feasibility, difficulties, obstacles, legal basis, and decision-making authority.

Regarding the search for funding sources for investment and upgrading of diverging expressways to full scale, the Ministry of Planning and Investment proposed assigning the Ministry of Finance to coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Transport and relevant agencies to report to the Prime Minister for permission to issue a government bond package of VND165,000 billion to invest in infrastructure projects.