Vietnam Plans another Tunnel in Central Region

3:26:29 PM | 7/8/2005

Vietnam will build another major tunnel through a mountain pass in the central region this year, expected to help boost transport and link economies throughout the region.

Work on the Ca Pass tunnel linking Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa provinces is scheduled to start in the third quarter of this year and complete in 2009, said Nguyen Ngoc Canh, deputy director of the Project Management Unit (PMU) 85 - the project investor.

Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, during his trip to Khanh Hoa in late 2004, emphasised the importance of the tunnel project.

The Ministry of Communications and Transport has considered the project’s pre-feasibility study and forwarded it to the Government for approval, said the ministry’s spokesman.

PMU 85 proposes two construction options. The first option requires more than VND2.65 trillion (US$168.8 million) and envisions the total length of tunnel and approaching roads at 11.25 kilometers. The second option needs nearly VND1.99 trillion (US$126.75 million).

Also, there are four other options that estimate less investment capital.

PMU 85 is now seeking partners to build the tunnel, Mr. Canh said. But he hoped that the project’s investment capital would be sourced from official development assistance (ODA) capital and State budget.

The project investor expected to recoup the total investment capital within 24 years.

If built, the Ca pass tunnel will be the third tunnel in the North-South road axis along Vietnam’s central coast.

Currently, the construction is underway for the tunnel under the Hai Van Pass, which is scheduled to open to the traffic on May 19 this year. The 12.18-kilometer tunnel will link Lang Co in Thua Thien-Hue to the north and Danang to the south.

Another tunnel under the Ngang Pass in the north of the central region has already opened to the traffic in August last year. The 495-meter-long tunnel in Quang Binh province helps save motorists five-sixths of time spent traversing the pass.