On September 29, in Hanoi, Politburo member and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a meeting of the Government Standing Committee to listen to the report on the results of the First Session of the Vietnam - China Railway Cooperation Joint Committee and reviewed the situation and progress of the implementation of work, continuing to promote the implementation of the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway project according to the set requirements.
According to the Resolution of the National Assembly, the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway project is about 419 km long with a total capital of VND 203,231 billion, equivalent to USD 8.37 billion, starting in 2025 and striving to complete in 2030.
The Prime Minister has requested the groundbreaking of some construction items of the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong Railway Project on December 19, 2025.
Concluding the meeting, the Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Construction to urgently implement, appraise, and announce standards and regulations for high-speed railways and the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway in accordance with the procedures, authority and regulations of law and international regulations, to be completed in October 2025.
The Ministry of Finance shall preside over and work with relevant agencies to review and calculate capital arrangement plans, including proactively developing Vietnam's capital sources and studying and proposing the most effective loan option.
At the same time, continue to work specifically with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank on the possibility of borrowing capital for the project; urgently report to the Government Standing Committee on specific plans in October.
The Prime Minister requested to urgently increase human resources and perfect the management boards of railway projects of the Ministry of Construction.
The Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong Railway Project Management Board continues to promote project implementation as soon as possible with the spirit of both doing and learning, drawing experience, and being proactive in implementing work, especially things that can be done by yourself.
The Prime Minister directs the Ministry of Construction and relevant agencies to develop a comprehensive plan for progress road, site clearance, and component projects.
In particular, for component project 1 (investing in infrastructure connecting stations on the route and station square, using domestic capital), the Prime Minister requested to complete the preparation and approval of the feasibility study report in October 2025; complete the technical design of the items to start construction before November 8; complete the selection of construction contractors and supervision consultants before December 5, complete site clearance and mine clearance within the construction area before December 19.
For component project 2 (investing in railway construction, using domestic capital and loans), the Prime Minister requested to urgently prepare a feasibility study report, to be completed by June 2026 at the latest, in the spirit of putting quality first and foremost; the appraisal and approval of the report must also be carried out urgently.
Regarding cooperation in railway industry development, the Prime Minister emphasized the viewpoint of implementing from low to high, from small to large, from simple to complex, to be as solid as possible.
The Prime Minister requested that together with the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway project, it is necessary to continue promoting the Dong Dang - Hanoi and Mong Cai - Ha Long - Hai Phong railway projects connecting Vietnam - China.
