Vietnam invites state-owned Chinese giant to join $67 bln high-speed railway project

Vietnam’s Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises (CMSC) has invited China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) to participate in and "make contributions" to the country’s $67-billion cross-country high-speed railway project.

CMSC vice chairman Nguyen Ngoc Canh made the suggestion at a Friday meeting with a delegation of CSCEC, while highlighting the Chinese giant’s experiences in conducting major projects in Vietnam.

Per the Vietnam-China joint statement after Vietnam's Party General Secretary To Lam's visit to China in August, the two countries strive to improve the connectivity by improving roads, railway, gateways, and smart customs clearance facilities, Canh said.

For railway, Vietnam plans to invest in building the North-South high-speed railway and upgrading three standard-gauge routes of Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong, Lang Son-Hanoi, and Mong Cai-Ha Long-Hai Phong to connect to China's, Canh added.

For his part, Jin Shuo, head of international project management at CSCEC, expressed the firm's interest in joining those mega projects. CSCEC is committed to fulfilling Vietnam’s requirements on timeline and quality, and is willing to share experience with Vietnam, he added.

Vietnam hopes to break ground on the first two sections of a North-South high-speed railway route late 2027. The 1,541-kilometer high-speed railway project, estimated to cost $67.34 billion, will have a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour. The railway is set to have 23 passenger stations and five cargo stations connected to key cargo hubs.

Vietnam will mainly rely on itself in building the nation’s first transnational high-speed railway, minimizing foreign strings attached, said Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Danh Huy at a press meeting on October 1.

Foreign agencies, including South Korean and Chinese ones, have already expressed their interest in joining the project.