North–South High-Speed Railway Accelerates: Ho Chi Minh City to Begin Site Clearance from 2027

Thang Long Project Management Board under Vietnam’s Ministry of Construction has recently sent an official document to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction regarding land clearance work for the North–South High-Speed Railway Project.

According to the document, the board is currently implementing procedures to select a consulting unit to prepare the project’s feasibility study report. Once the mid-term report is approved, the board will instruct consultants to prepare land clearance boundary marker documents. It is expected that from the third quarter of 2027, the dossiers and on-site boundary markers will be handed over to local authorities to begin compensation, support, and site clearance work.

Based on the land clearance boundaries defined in the preliminary design stage of the pre-feasibility study report, the board requested the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction to proactively review resettlement needs and implement resettlement areas in order to ensure the project’s overall schedule in line with Government resolutions. In case of any adjustments to the timeline, the board will promptly notify local authorities for proactive coordination.

According to the master plan, the North–South High-Speed Railway project will have a total length of approximately 1,541 km, consisting of a newly built double-track railway with a standard gauge of 1,435 mm and a design speed of up to 350 km/h. The preliminary total investment capital is estimated at around VND 1.713 quadrillion, equivalent to approximately USD 67.34 billion.

For the section passing through Ho Chi Minh City, the route is about 17 km long and is expected to require around 110 hectares of land. The alignment generally follows the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway corridor. The section from An Phu Interchange to Ring Road 2 has already completed site clearance.

However, the section from Ring Road 2 to Ring Road 3 lies within a 40-meter-wide planning corridor, where vacant land and residential areas still coexist and land clearance has not yet been completed. Meanwhile, the section from Ring Road 3 to the end of Ho Chi Minh City territory near the Dong Nai River will run parallel to the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway within a 140-meter-wide planning corridor.

Regarding operational infrastructure, Thu Thiem Station has been included in the planning with an area of approximately 17.3 hectares. The area has not yet undergone site clearance and currently consists mainly of residential land and vacant plots. Meanwhile, Long Truong Depot covers approximately 60.5 hectares and is currently agricultural land, with land clearance work also unfinished.

Previously, on the afternoon of May 4, 2026, Prime Minister Le Minh Hung chaired the Government’s regular meeting for April 2026, marking the first regular meeting of the 16th-term Government.

One of the key highlights was the Prime Minister’s directive to the Ministry of Construction to urgently complete investment preparation procedures, especially for the North–South High-Speed Railway and railway lines connecting Vietnam with China.

In parallel, at the end of April, the Government Office also issued a conclusion notice from Standing Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc regarding a meeting on the progress of railway projects, focusing on the North–South High-Speed Railway and related routes.

Accordingly, the Deputy Prime Minister requested ministries, agencies, and localities to proactively implement directives from the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, and the Government, ensuring project progress, quality, and investment efficiency while avoiding delays or shirking responsibilities. Localities along the railway route are required to begin land clearance work immediately after receiving dossiers and boundary markers from the Ministry of Construction.

On the institutional side, the Ministry of Construction and relevant ministries are tasked with continuing to review, amend, and improve legal frameworks related to railway investment, management, operation, and exploitation to ensure compatibility with Vietnam’s actual conditions.

The Ministry of Construction is also required to complete procedures for selecting the feasibility study consulting unit in the second quarter of 2026. Local authorities along the route are encouraged to proactively plan urban and economic development to maximize the economic benefits brought by the railway. Notably, the selection of partners will be tied to the key condition of technology transfer to Vietnam.

Source: Tú Anh