$698 mln expressway to connect Central Highlands, southern production hub

Lam Dong is proposing to clear 186 hectares of forest to make way for the VND16,220 billion ($698 million) Tan Phu-Bao Loc expressway linking the Central Highlands province with neighboring Dong Nai.

Of the 186 hectares, over 123 hectares is natural forest and the remainder, plantations. The expressway project will cover a total 455 hectares.

The 66-kilometer section will be developed under a public-private partnership (PPP). Of the total $698 million, $418 million will be financed by private investors and the remainder, by the state.

The Tan Phu-Bao Loc expressway will run from Phu Trung commune, Tan Phu district in the southern province of Dong Nai to the intersection of Dau Giay-Lien Khuong expressway with Nguyen Van Cu road in Lam Dong province’s Bao Loc town.

About 11 kilometers and 55 kilometers of the section will pass through the provinces of Lam Dong and Dong Nai, respectively.

The first phase from now to 2025 will include construction of a two-lane roadbed of at least 13.5 meters wide and two emergency lanes. The last phase, from 2025 to 2035, will invest in a 22-meter-wide roadbed with four lanes for cars and two emergency lanes.

The consortium of investors proposed to participate in the project include Deo Ca Group, Hung Thinh Incoins JSC, and Nam Mien Trung Co., Ltd, all domestic private companies.

According to Deo Ca Group, the project's overall investment has dropped more than VND3,000 billion ($129 million) from the initial estimate to draw new investors.

The toll-collection section project is expected to see a return on investment in 23 years and four months.

The Tan Phu-Bao Loc section is one of three components of the 200-kilometer Dau Giay-Lien Khuong Expressway, which connects Ho Chi Minh City to the Central Highlands.

The government tasked Lam Dong authorities with implementing the Tan Phu-Bao Loc and the Bao Loc-Lien Khuong sections.

Together with two other sections, Dau Giay-Tan Phu and Bao Loc-Lien Khuong, the Tan Phu-Bao Loc expressway is expected to promote trade between southeastern provinces and the Central Highlands.

Dong Nai province, neighboring HCMC, is a manufacturing hub in southern Vietnam, while Lam Dong is a flower and vegetable hub and home to the resort town of Da Lat.