Construction work on the Nhổn-Hà Nội Station metro line in Kim Mã Street. — VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hùng

HÀ NỘI — The flyover section of the Nhổn-Hà Nội Station metro line is scheduled to open for trial by the end of this year, said Lê Trung Hiếu, deputy director of the Hà Nội Metropolitan Railway Management Board (MRB).

Construction work on the underground section at the S9-Kim Mã Station will start next year.

The work is scheduled to be implemented after efforts to resolve problems related to ground clearance at the S11-Văn Miếu Station, he said.

Hiếu told a Vietnam News Agency correspondent that the project was temporarily stopped in August this year due to obstacles related to ground clearance. However, following instructions from municipal authorities, the problems were resolved and compensation was completed.

The underground section is only four kilometres in length, but the section passes through the inner city crowded with traffic. A tunnelling robot can begin work by the middle or the end of next year.

The robot can dig 18 metres per day, but following advice from experts regarding safety, it will be set to work at a speed of 10 metres per day.

An MRB spokesperson said that Metro Hà Nội's flyover section would begin a two-phase trial next month.

In the first phase, between four and eight trains will run from 9 am to 7 pm, Monday to Friday. 

In the second phase, the trains will run with different emergency scenarios, such as total or partial loss of electricity, and fire and rescue. 

So far, the underground section is 42 per cent.

It is expected that the 8.5-km flyover section will open for public use next year, whereas the whole system will be opened by 2027.

The project has ten main packages; nine related to construction and equipment and one on consultancy.

So far, the Hà Nội People's Committee has completed contracts signing and implementing nine packages about construction and equipment, of which two packages, CP01 and CP04, were fulfilled.

Due to late ground clearance, the Hyundai E&C-Ghella (HGU) contractor, the project's main contractor, demanded US$114.7 million in compensation for losses caused by delays.

Hiếu said that they were discussing the issue with the contractor to reach an accurate assessment of the actual damage caused. However, the construction will still proceed while waiting for the International Court of Arbitration for final decisions.

The Nhổn-Hà Nội Station metro line project spans 12.5 kilometres with a total capital of VNĐ32 trillion (US$1.4 billion). It was set to be completed in 2015. — VNS