Ho Chi Minh City seeks partners for 300 public-private partnership projects

The Ho Chi Minh City government is considering how a variety of projects across the city, include those meant to combat flooding and land subsidence and resettle people living along canals can be implemented is seeking private partners for nearly 300 PPP projects.

HCMC’s previous PPP projects include the Saigon Bridge, the Phu My Bridge, expansion of the Hanoi Expressway and construction of the Tan Son Nhat – Binh Loi belt road, projects that have helped smooth traffic and fostered socio-economic development across the city.

Tran Anh Tuan, deputy director of the city Department of Planning and Investment said that the PPP projects have helped raise funds from the private sector for infrastructure development and speed up development on projects that the city would have had a hard time funding.

However, Tran warned that there are new regulations on PPP that will soon take effect and the city could face difficulties in raising funds for projects that would not have revenues or are financially infeasible, such as those for preventing flooding, controlling tides, building embankments, and resettling households living along canals or near government offices and cemeteries.

The new PPP regulations will also effect a number of Build Transfer (BT) projects and the city government is now asking all relevant offices to consider both BT and PPP projects and make determinations as to which projects will be affected by the new regulations, and which projects are still PPP viable.

Source: vietnam business