North-South expressway phase 2 construction to commence before mid January

All 25 packages of the North-South Expressway eastern section's phase 2 must start construction before January 15, says Minister of Transport Nguyen Van Thang.

Project management boards were asked to appoint contractors for 12 packages which must commence construction before December 31, 2022.

The remaining 13 packages must see their design and cost estimation approved for construction to begin before January 15, 2023, the minister said in a Wednesday release.

According to the Transport Construction Investment Management Authority, under the Ministry of Transport, those 12 packages are set to complete the selection of contractors by December 22 and then initiate construction from December 26.

As of November 25, seven out of 12 provinces, namely Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Khanh Hoa, Hau Giang, Kien Giang, and Ca Mau, completed 60% of the site clearance, according to a report by the project management board.

The other five localities of Quang Tri, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, and Can Tho city did not meet the government's timeline requirement.

The eastern section of the North-South Expressway phase 2, which is set for construction in 2021-2025 and open to traffic in 2026, has an investment of VND146,985 billion ($6.17 billion) and a total length of 723.7 kilometers.

The main parts are Ha Tinh-Quang Tri (260.9 kilometers), Quang Ngai-Nha Trang (352.06 kilometers), and Can Tho-Ca Mau (110.9 kilometers).

The expressway is designed with six lanes, except for the Can Tho-Ca Mau route with only four. The total project area spans over 5,400 hectares.

The 654-kilometer phase 1 of the North-South Expressway eastern section features 11 sub-projects in 2017-2020. Six were planned to basically complete in 2021, three in 2022 and two in 2023. According to a government report in October, only one out of the 11 sub-projects have completed, while the remaining are under construction.