Ho Chi Minh City set to start $441 million anti-flooding project
Local construction firm Trung Nam Group has been contracted to develop the project in three years under a built-transfer agreement. The developer will handle construction work at its own expenses in exchange for rights to lands in the city for its other projects.
With a charter capital of VND2 trillion, Trung Nam will take out loans from BIDV to fund the project, the Vietnam News Agency said, citing an agreement signed by the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City and Trung Nam Group on Friday.
The project is expected to control flooding and climate change’s effects in a downtown area of 570 square kilometers where around 6.5 million people are living, according to the news agency. The targeted districts are 1, 4, 7, 8, Nha Be and Binh Chanh.
Notably, six floodgates with a width of 40-160 meters and a nearly 7.8-kilometer embankment will be built on and along the Saigon River.
According to the plan, three pumping stations with a capacity of 12-48 cubic meters per second and 25 small drains will also be set up.
At a meeting early this year, the municipal authority announced that it will earmark more than VND156 trillion ($6.85 billion) for anti-flooding projects over the next five years.
