HCM City signs BT infrastructure deal
Under the contract, the Dai Quang Minh Real Estate Investment Joint Stock Company will invest in the construction of four main roads on the peninsulas urban area, including a six-lane arc-shaped road, a four-lane road along central lake, a two-lane road along the Sai Gon River, and a flyover to the southern ecological forest area.
All of the four main roads, built under the BT strategy, have a total length of 12km including 10 bridges with total investment fund of VND12 trillion (US$560 million).
The company has invested a total of VND7 trillion (US$328.5 million) to develop infrastructure in the new urban area.
Prior to the contract, the company had signed an initial contract and broke ground for the project in February, to ensure that completion would occur in early 2017.
Construction on the four roads has started, and two of the 10 bridges have been built.
Tran Ba Duong, general director of the company, said the four roads construction will be completed in early 2017.
Beside the four main roads, the real estate developer is investing in building the central square and riverside park under BT mode.
The central square and the riverside park have a combined area of roughly 30ha.
The total investment fund for this project is estimated at nearly VND2 trillion.
Designs for the square and park have been submitted for approval.
The company will also invest in Thu Thiem 2 bridge which links the citys central with the new urban area.
The company has completed design for the six-lane bridge, and construction of the bridge is expected to begin in April next year.
The city government has appointed the company to build a pedestrian bridge linking the peninsula with Nguyen Hue Boulevard.
The HCM Citys Peoples Committee chose Dai Quang Minh Real Estate Investment Joint Stock Company to replace the Viet Nam Infrastructure Development and Finance Investment Joint Stock Company to build the four main roads and Viet Nam Construction and Import-Export Corporation to build Thu Thiem 2 bridge. The two companies subsequently withdrew from the new urban area projects.
Nguyen Huu Tin, deputy chairman of HCM Citys Peoples Committee, said that infrastructure in Thu Thiem required trillions of Vietnamese dong. With the limited budget of the city, the Build-Transfer investment mode is appropriate, he added.
The city also plans to invest in other branch roads in the urban area, he added.
Under an agreement with the city, Dai Quang Minh Real Estate Investment Joint Stock Company will be given land to develop residential areas in the peninsula in exchange for investing in infrastructure.
The company plans to develop an 80-ha residential area near the southern section of the Mai Chi Tho Road, and a 20-hectare area with 11 plots of land near the northern section of the road.
According to the plan, the company will also build another urban area near a 150ha southern ecological forest area on the peninsula. The urban area will have 234 villas, 395 houses, 5,600 luxury apartments, a five-star hotel and a hospital.