Work starts on expressway connecting Vietnam's Central Highlands with southeastern region

Construction on Tuesday began on the first component of Gia Nghia town (the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong)-Chon Thanh town (the southeastern province of Binh Phuoc) section of the North-South Expressway.

The project is carried out by a consortium of Vingroup (HoSE: VIC) - Vietnam’s leading private conglomerate - and top private lender Techcombank (HoSE: TCB).

Its preliminary investment is more than VND25,500 billion ($1 billion), of which VND10,500 billion ($412 million) will be sourced from the central state budget, VND12.77 trillion ($500 million) from the investors, and the remainder from local state budgets.

This is the first time the cash-rich partnership of Vingroup and Techcombank has invested in an expressway project.

The project is divided into five components, with the first and most critical - the main route of the Gia Nghia-Chon Thanh Expressway, approved for development under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Binh Phuoc province is responsible for the first component that has an investment of nearly VND20 trillion ($770 million).

Spanning 124.13 km and with a designed speed of 120 km/h, the route passes through Dak R'lap district (Dak Nong province) for about 23.1 km, and Bu Dang and Dong Phu districts, Dong Xoai town, and Chon Thanh township (Binh Phuoc province) for around 101.03 km.

The expressway is planned to have six lanes in its completed phase, with a roadbed of 32.25 meters, expanding to 33 meters through Binh Phuoc province’s Dong Xoai town.

In the initial phase, the project will feature a fully operational four-lane expressway with a roadbed of 24.75 meters, increasing to 25.5 meters through Dong Xoai town.

The construction is scheduled to be completed by 2026 and the section expected to be operational in 2027.

The project is expected to promote the socio-economic development of Binh Phuoc and Dak Nong, connect the southeastern region with the Central Highlands, and reduce the traffic load on National Highway 14 - the main artery connecting the two provinces.

Once completed, it will shorten travel time from Dak Nong to Ho Chi Minh City via Binh Phuoc.