City seeks investors for Metro project

Illustration of a station in the second phase of Metro Line No 5. Photo courtesy of the HCM City Management Authority for Urban Railways

Le Nguyen Minh Quang, director of HCM City Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), said the city would seek investment from many sources, including ODA loans and loans through public-private partnerships.

“The city will try to use the capital effectively and prevent any waste,” he said.

Quang spoke at a meting on Thursday held by the Korea Railroad Research Institute, the Korea International Cooperation Agency and MAUR.

Total investment for the second phase is more than $2.4 billion, including construction cost and site clearance.

Of the figure, the South Korean government has committed to financing $500 million while the remainder ($1.9 billion) will come from the Vietnamese Government.

The section will measure 14.56 kilometres, including 13 stations, eight of which are underground. The second phase is an extension to the 8.89-km section in the first phase.

Hoang Nhu Cuong, deputy head of MAUR, said the metro line No 5 is an important line in the city’s metro system as it passes through Nguyen Van Linh Street District 7 and the Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway.

The second phase will connect with metro line No 3b at the Hang Xanh intersection and metro line No 4 at the Phu Nhuan intersection.

Park Noh Wan, the Korean consul general in HCM City, said South Korea would transfer technology, exchange experiences and cooperate with Viet Nam, especially HCM City, to develop the metro systems.

Capital for the first phase of the metro line No 5 has been arranged, but construction has yet to commence.

MAUR has urged the municipal authority to submit an investment proposal for the first phase to the Government and National Assembly for approval.

Investors have committed to fund the project at a cost of $1.56 billion.

The Spanish Government is investing $328 million, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) $567 million, the European Investment Bank (EIB) $179 million and the German Development Bank (KfW) $239 million. The remainder will come from the Vietnamese government.

The first phase of metro line No 5, with nine stations, will have a total length of 8.9 km, including 7.46 km underground and 1.43 km above ground.

In the first phase, the line will connect with metro line No 1 at the Sai Gon Bridge and metro line No 2 at the Bay Hien intersection.

The metro line No 5 connects the Bay Hien intersection in Tan Binh District and Sai Gon Bridge in Binh Thanh District.

The metro line No 5 will transport passengers from outlying areas to the city centre, which is expected to contribute to socio-economic development.

The line, expected to be put into operation by 2025, will be driverless, with automated ticketing systems and smart cards.

HCM City has planned a total of eight metro lines, one tramway line and two monorail lines but currently only metro Line 1 between Ben Thanh in District 1 and Suoi Tien Amusement Park in District 9 is under construction. It is scheduled for completion in 2020.

The metro line No 1 has a length of nearly 20 kilometres and consists of 14 stations, three of which are underground.