Vietnam parliament greenlights $67 bln North-South high-speed railway project

The National Assembly, Vietnam's highest legislative body, on Saturday okayed the government's North-South high-speed railway proposal, with 443 out of 454 members voting in favor.

According to the parliament's resolution, the route is estimated to cost VND1,700 trillion ($67 billion), using public investment capital. The expected expenditure is equivalent to nearly 15.6% of Vietnam's 2023 GDP ($430 billion).

It will run 1,541 kilometers through 20 provinces and cities with a designed speed of 350 km/hour, starting at Ngoc Hoi Station in Hanoi and ending at Thu Thiem Station in Ho Chi Minh City.

The mammoth trans-national project requires clearance of 10,827 hectares of land and resettlement of 120,836 residents.

With construction kickoff scheduled for 2027 and competition for 2035, it will need $5.6 billion per year on average, or 1.3% of 2023 GDP and 1.0% of 2027 GDP.

To facilitate the implementation, the National Assembly agreed to apply special mechanisms and policies.

The same day, the legislature okayed to add a runway and extend the completion deadline for phase 1 of the Long Thanh International Airport in the southern province of Dong Nai to the end of 2026.

Under the adopted resolution, the first phase will feature the construction of two runways in the northern area and one passenger terminal, along with supporting infrastructure, to accommodate 25 million passengers per year and handle 1.2 million tons of cargo annually.

The government is authorized to approve the updated feasibility report for phase 1, without needing to submit it to the National Assembly for approval, according to the resolution.

The Long Thanh International Airport, about 40 kilometers east of Ho Chi Minh City, is a mega project with a total investment of VND336.63 trillion ($14.12 billion) that will be built in three phases.

Once completed, the 5,000-hectare airport will be the nation’s biggest, helping reduce overload at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCMC.