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| A model of the Cát Linh-Hà Đông railway’s locomotive. The project has completed 90 per cent of construction work. — VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hùng |
Viet Nam News
HÀ NỘI — China Eximbank has disbursed US$18.25 million for Hà Nội’s Cát Linh–Hà Đông Railway Project, said Vũ Hồng Phương, Deputy Director General of the Railway Project Management Unit under the Ministry of Transport, on Tuesday.
The amount, part of a delayed $22.75 million, has been transferred to the Engineering, Procurement, Construction (EPC) contractor, to be paid to sub-contractors.
The project has completed 90 per cent of construction work. Equipment installation is underway, Phương said.
However, the delay in capital disbursement has hindered the project’s progress.
The Railway Project Management Unit and relevant bodies will supervise the payment process for sub-contractors to ensure they have finances for construction.
It will also push the EPC contractor and sub-contractors to speed up construction to make up for the delay.
The project is scheduled to begin trial runs in October and be officially operational in the second quarter of 2018.
Originally slated to be finished two years ago, capital issues have hindered the progress of the capital’s first metro line, threatening to derail the project.
The Cát Linh-Hà Đông urban railway will have 12 stations and one depot area. Out of the initially projected investment of $552 million, $419 million (76 per cent) was sourced from Chinese loans, with the rest matching funds by the Vietnamese Government.
Construction started in 2011 but since then costs have risen to $886 million, exceeding the original figure by $250 million, or a 160 per cent increase.
An additional preferential loan worth $250.62 million, negotiated three years ago, was signed between the Ministry of Finance and China Eximbank on May 11. — VNS
