To date, the project's construction volume has reached about 30%.
The implementation progress is still slow due to lack of sand, the total demand of the project is about 29 million m3, but only about 23 million m3 has been identified. Localities are speeding up procedures for granting mining licenses and reviewing additional shortage of sand resources.
Currently, the local sand source has been exhausted, most of the mines have been dredged to the end. Many rivers are being exploited for sand in a destructive manner, leading to landslides. It is estimated that each year, the Mekong Delta loses from 300 hectares to 500 hectares of land and tens of thousands of households are at risk of having to relocate from dangerous areas due to landslides.
Therefore, it is not advisable and impossible to continue dredging sand on rivers in the Mekong Delta region, and to consider sand import solutions to build key transport infrastructure projects.
Not only the expressway projects in the Mekong Delta, the Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 3 project is also lacking sand. Ring Road 3 needs about 11.3 million m3, but up to now, Tien Giang, Vinh Long, and Ben Tre provinces have only licensed 6/13 mines. However, even when all 13 mines are put into operation, the total maximum exploitation capacity is only about 9,200 m3/day, while the actual demand to ensure progress is 22,000 m3/day. Not to mention, sand quality is very important, affecting the quality of the project.
Therefore, the solution to be considered is to import sand from Cambodia. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Cambodia's sand reserves for filling and construction are abundant, which can provide enough for the immediate and long-term import and use needs of the southern provinces of Vietnam.
The proposal to import sand is not new, at the working session of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha with leaders of ministries, branches and localities in the South on the afternoon of June 24, 2024, Mr. Phan Van Mai (Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee at that time) said: "To handle the shortage of sand, some contractors have bought Cambodian sand. Ho Chi Minh City supports this option, although it may have to compensate for the price difference".
Imports of sand will limit domestic sand mining, prevent landslides, and protect the environment. Temporarily suspending exploitation of domestic sand mines is to reserve resources.
However, sand imports need to be transparent in import activities, combating invoice fraud and negative fees that push up sand prices.
I would like to reiterate the direction of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on building expressways for the Mekong Delta: "Inheriting the achievements of previous generations, we are determined and striving to complete about 500 - 600km of expressways in the Mekong Delta in this term and prepare for the next term to continue to complete about 600km".
We cannot slow down the progress of infrastructure projects due to lack of sand, there must be timely and effective solutions.
