With a cost overrun of $300 million, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong project is under review.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has demanded clarification of the responsibilities of individuals and organizations for allowing the Cat Linh - Ha Dong project to incur a cost overrun of $300 million.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has issued a document requesting the Ministry of Transport to coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and other relevant agencies to work with Chinese partners to supplement ODA funding for the additional capital required for the Cat Linh - Ha Dong railway project.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai requested the Ministry of Transport and the Hanoi People's Committee to direct an investigation into the causes and clarify the responsibilities of organizations and individuals regarding the limited quality of the basic design, which led to adjustments, delays in land clearance, and prolonged construction time, resulting in an increase in the total investment cost.

The Cat Linh - Ha Dong urban railway project (Hanoi) includes the following components: construction of 13 km of elevated railway, 1.7 km of access to and from the depot area, double-track railway with a gauge of 1.435m, maximum speed of 80 km/h; equipped with 13 trains of 4 carriages each with a capacity of approximately 1,200 people, running at a frequency of 2 minutes/trip. The project also includes 12 elevated stations and a 9-story control building within the 23-hectare depot area.

The main contract for the project (design, equipment and materials supply, and construction) was awarded to China Railway Construction Corporation No. 6 under an EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) general contractor agreement.

The Cat Linh - Ha Dong urban railway project is two years behind schedule. Photo: Ba Do.

However, according to the Railway Project Management Board - representing the investor - the implementation process has involved several items that need to be added, modified, and adjusted. The delay in land clearance has prolonged the project's implementation time and significantly increased costs.

Specifically, the two-story station was upgraded to three stories to add functional rooms on the second floor, minimizing land acquisition and providing each station with an additional pedestrian overpass. This adjustment reduced land acquisition costs by $43 million, but resulted in an overall cost increase of $84 million (due to inflation and changes in scale).

The metro depot area in Ha Dong district has weak soil at a depth of 2 to 3 meters, but the consulting firm had not previously proposed a solution. During implementation, the design consultant recommended soil treatment at a cost of $13 million. Slow land clearance and the prolonged relocation of technical infrastructure also increased costs for these items, leading the investor to request an additional $88 million.

Along with many other items that had to be changed, such as adjusting the bypass route for National Highway 6, changing the hull material from weather-resistant steel to stainless steel, training costs, the location of the girder casting yard, and the girder launching and installation plan... these changes increased the project cost by more than 10 million USD.

Fluctuations in raw material prices and policy changes over the years were also deemed inaccurate, so the railway project management board proposed an additional funding of 95 million USD.

In total, the Ministry of Transport has proposed to the Prime Minister that the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro project's investment be adjusted from $552 million to $891 million, an increase of $339 million.

Following the submission of a proposal to the Government to adjust the investment, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Hong Truong sent a document inviting the State Audit Office to conduct an inspection, aiming to rectify compliance with investment management regulations; address obstacles and prevent significant errors that could cause damage to the State.

The project has a total investment of VND 8,770 billion, equivalent to more than USD 552 million (at 2008 prices), of which USD 419 million is Chinese ODA, USD 169 million is credit, and USD 133 million is Vietnamese counterpart funding. The initial implementation period was expected from August 2008 to November 2013.

After adjusting the timeline, the Ministry of Transport announced the schedule for trial runs of the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro line starting in January 2015 and official operation from June 2015.

According to Hanoi Moi Online