Government proposes public investment for Bien Hoa-Vung Tau expressway

The government has proposed a public investment of VND17,837 billion ($777 million) in phase 1 for Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway connecting with Cai Mep-Thi Vai Port, Long Thanh International Airport, and the southern key economic region.

The proposal is part of a pre-feasibility report the government lodged with the National Assembly.

The 5.7-kilometer expressway begins at Bien Hoa town of Dong Nai province and ends at Ba Ria town of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province. The first phase of the project will include four to six lanes, with a clearance scale of six to eight lanes.

Of the total investment, nearly $622 million will be allocated for the period 2022-2025 from the medium-term public investment plan 2021-2025, and the socio-economic recovery and development program; while the remainder will be invested in 2026 from the public investment plan 2026-2030.

The project was prepared for investment in 2022, construction in 2023, and completion in 2025.

It includes three component projects. The first two sub-projects are 16 kilometers and 18.2 kilometers long in Dong Nai province. The third is 19.5 kilometers long in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.

In September 2021, the project was approved by the Government under public-private partnership (PPP), with $289 million from the State’s budget.

However, given challenges in mobilizing private capital, the extended bidding time makes completion by 2025 unlikely. Therefore, public funding was proposed instead to accelerate project implementation.

Once complete, Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway will relieve congestion on National Highway 51, which connects with Vung Tau town, Ho Chi Minh City, and Dong Nai province.

It will also run parallel to the North-South Expressway eastern section, and cut through HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway and Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway.