The Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway project in Hanoi (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministry ofTransport (MoT) will allocate the funding for the Cat Linh-Ha Dong urbanrailway project to its main contractor, in line with the signedEngineering-Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract, Deputy Minister ofTransport Nguyen Ngoc Dong has said.
Dong told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)that the main contractor asked for 50 million USD for the line’s trial run duringrecent online meetings with the Railway Management Board.
Documented requests for the payment will alsobe rejected if they run counter to contract regulations, he stressed.
According to a representative from theRailway Management Board under MoT - the main investor of the Cat Linh-Ha Dongurban railway project - the contractor requires 50 million USD for the test runand seeks the payment ahead of handover.
The amount is included in the totalinvestment and is not extra spending, the representative added.
However, the project investor was of the view that any payment should be in accordance with the EPC contract. The two sides will thereforecontinue to further study the terms of the contract for 15 days and then meet for further discussion.
More than 14.37 trillion VND (621 millionUSD), or 81.9 percent of the total investment capital, has been disbursed todate.
According to a Government report to theNational Assembly, the project has been basically completed but has not met requirements to be handedover and put into operation.
There remain bottlenecks regardingequipment, technologies, safety assessments, and financial matters.
The Railway Management Board said that dueto the COVID-19 pandemic, only four senior experts from thecontractor are now in Vietnam. Another 150 staff of the Chinese contractor arescheduled to return to Vietnam in early June.
Despite 99 percent ofthe workload being completed, the project’s commercial operations have experiencedmultiple setbacks and been delayed eight times since construction began in2011.
Despite 99 percent ofthe workload being completed, the project’s commercial operations have experiencedmultiple setbacks and been delayed eight times since construction began in2011.
The 13.5-km-long railway line, from Cat Linhin Ba Dinh district to Ha Dong district of Hanoi, has a total investment capital of approximately 886 millionUSD after several adjustments, funded by Chinese ODA.
Trains will run at a maximum speed of 80 km/h,with an average speed of 35 km/h, and will set out every two minutes./.
Trains will run at a maximum speed of 80 km/h,with an average speed of 35 km/h, and will set out every two minutes./.
VNA
