The National Assembly's Economic Committee has just issued Report No. 3305/BC-UBKT15 on preliminary examination of the investment policy for the high-speed railway project on the North-South axis.
The Standing Committee of the Economic Committee believes that the project's operation with advantages in terms of time, ticket price and other advantages that this mode of transport brings will greatly affect the efficiency of short-distance flights (such as Hanoi - Vinh, Ho Chi Minh City - Nha Trang...).
Therefore, this will affect the investment and development of airports in the future. However, the pre-feasibility study report has not clarified this content.
There are suggestions to clarify the feasibility and effectiveness of calculating ticket prices at 60-70% of the average ticket prices of airlines operating on the same route.
Clarify how to calculate the total fare, compare with similar high-speed railway routes of countries around the world, while Vietnam has not mastered the technology and has to import and invest in many items, which can lead to higher fares than the actual price.
The Standing Committee of the Economic Committee also proposed to supplement and evaluate more comprehensively the financial plan of the project during the operation and exploitation phase, in the context of the overall need for public investment capital and to supplement international experience in organizing, operating and exploiting high-speed railway lines.
According to the preliminary review report, the existing railway line will be renovated and upgraded to transport goods and serve short-distance tourist passengers. Meanwhile, the high-speed railway line, in addition to transporting passengers, is also designed to transport goods.
Therefore, this agency proposed to clarify the demand for freight transport on high-speed railways and the exploitation plan of these two railway lines to have appropriate and optimal investment solutions.
According to the pre-feasibility study report, the project analyzed sensitivity to scenarios when costs increased by 5%, 10% and benefits decreased by 5%, 10%.
However, there are opinions that the project is placed in a very optimistic situation regarding growth rate. But in the context of the unpredictable economic and political situation in the world, the Standing Committee of the Economic Committee suggested that different scenarios should be set out to have a basis for consideration and decision.
According to the Standing Committee of the Economic Committee, there are opinions that, in the present and in the near future, organizations, businesses and individuals can carry out most of their commercial transactions, sign agreements, contracts, negotiate, dialogue... on digital platforms, leading to a reduction in the need to travel and meet in person.
Therefore, this agency recommends reviewing and calculating more carefully, and analyzing possible risks in the process of implementing appropriate solutions.
Regarding financial efficiency, the Standing Committee of the Economic Committee stated that there were opinions suggesting clarifying the basis for calculating and forecasting the project's transportation demand, when in fact, in the past, the transportation demand forecast of many BOT transport projects had a large difference compared to reality.
The agency also recommended a thorough review to properly assess the actual financial performance of the project and the possibility of the budget having to compensate for future losses in transport business activities on the high-speed railway line.
The Standing Committee of the Economic Committee found that passenger stations in some localities are basically not located in urban centers (Ngoc Hoi station, Thu Thiem station, Nam Dinh station...).
To ensure maximum efficiency for the project, the station locations must be arranged in a way that attracts the most passengers. Therefore, the agency requested clarification on the selection of station locations for the project.
