HÀ NỘI — The Bạch Đằng Bridge BOT Joint Stock Company in northern Quảng Ninh province has decided to replace the contractor of the bridge for delay in construction.

The Cường Thịnh Thi Construction Investment Joint Stock Company will be suspended and replaced by another contractor with a better capacity to ensure the progress of the project as scheduled.

The 5.4km-long bridge across the Bạch Đằng river is being built at a cost of VNĐ7.3 trillion (US$324 million) in the form of Build-Operate-Transfer. The cable-supported bridge is 28m wide with four traffic lanes.

Construction of the bridge started in January 2015. Touted as the first made-in-Việt Nam bridge, it will, together with the Hải Phòng-Hạ Long-Vân Đồn highway, connect the three economic hubs in the north---Hà Nội, Hải Phòng and Quảng Ninh---upon its completion.

The bridge will reduce the distance between Hà Nội and Quảng Ninh from 175km to 125km as well as cut travel time between the two localities by half.

The final segments of the bridge connecting the northern port city of Hải Phòng and the northern coastal province of Quảng Ninh were joined in April and investors committed to complete the final work before June 30.

However, after the final segments of the bridge were joined, the remaining work (some seven per cent of the project) has been progressing slowly. These include spreading asphaltic concrete for the bridge surface, cleaning construction waste and installing bridge barriers. Just a few workers have been assigned to complete the remaining works, resulting in the delay.

After directly inspecting the construction site, director of the provincial Transport Department Vũ Văn Khánh said a warning was given to the contractor for the delayed work.

Vice chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Vũ Văn Diên, asked the contractor to mobilise enough workers and equipment to speed up the project. He said any contractor found to have delayed the work would be replaced. — VNS