An auction for land in the vicinity of the North-South high-speed railway stations, valued at 68 billion USD, to promote urban development

This content is mentioned in Resolution No. 106/NQ-CP dated April 23, 2025, regarding the implementation plan of Resolution No. 172/2024/QH15 dated November 30, 2024, by the National Assembly on the investment policy for the North-South high-speed railway project, recently issued by the Government.

Specifically, the requirements outlined in the Resolution are to closely follow the investment policy for the project approved by the National Assembly in order to implement and ensure the goals and scale of the construction of the North-South high-speed railway line, with a total length of approximately 1,541 km, design speed of 350 km/h, axle load of 22.5 tons, 23 passenger stations, and 5 freight stations; investment in vehicles and equipment for passenger transport, meeting the dual-use requirements for national defense and security, and capable of transporting goods when necessary.

The North-South high-speed railway project is a national key project, large-scale, with high technical and technological requirements, urgent implementation progress, and the first time being implemented in Vietnam. The project has been authorized by the National Assembly to apply various special mechanisms and policies for its implementation. To ensure the project’s quality and progress, alongside regular tasks, the government assigns ministries, central agencies, and local authorities to carry out the following tasks:

The development and issuance of legal documents detailing the content, procedures, and authority to implement the special mechanisms and policies approved by the National Assembly in Article 3 of Resolution No. 172/2024/QH15 will be carried out as follows:

1. Issuing Decrees by the Government:
   • Decree on the content and requirements for surveying and preparing the overall technical design (FEED), replacing the basic design in the project’s feasibility study report, and managing investment costs for the project applying FEED design; guidelines on the duties and powers of parties involved in the contract under the EPC format (investor, EPC contractor, supervising consultant, etc.); detailed regulations and guidelines on planning, adjustments to zoning plans, and detailed planning for the areas surrounding high-speed railway stations.
   • Decree on the criteria for selecting state-owned enterprises or Vietnamese enterprises entrusted with providing services or industrial goods related to railways.
   • Decree on the development of railway science and technology, specifying the research, application, and technology transfer requirements for railway projects.
   • Decree on the temporary use of forests and the return of forests for construction purposes to support railway projects.

Additionally, the issuance of decisions by the Prime Minister will include regulations on the list of railway industrial services and goods entrusted to state-owned or Vietnamese enterprises.

The plan also includes developing a railway industry development project for the period up to 2035, with a vision for 2045, to be submitted to the Prime Minister for approval. The plan will outline the current situation, objectives, tasks, and solutions to align with the development direction and roadmap for the railway industry, as presented to the Politburo. It will identify specific railway industrial fields that need development and provide a detailed roadmap for each field, such as construction, vehicles, specialized materials, electric power, information and signaling systems, and auxiliary industries.

The proposal for human resource development in the railway sector will be submitted for approval by the Prime Minister. The proposal must assess the training needs of entities involved in the construction, management, operation, and maintenance of high-speed railways, including state management agencies, project management units, investment and construction units, and others requiring training.

Establishing the Project Management Unit for specialized project management and implementing the project. The restructuring of the Vietnam Railway Corporation will be carried out to coordinate and participate in the project’s preparation and implementation phases, as well as managing and maintaining infrastructure after the project completion.

Regarding the project implementation, the Resolution specifies that the Ministry of Construction will be the governing body, coordinating with related ministries, agencies, and localities, to prepare and present the project to the Prime Minister for approval and ensure implementation on schedule.

Key implementation milestones are as follows:

• Selecting consulting contractors to carry out surveys, prepare the feasibility study report, and complete related tasks, submitting the feasibility study report to the Prime Minister by August 2026.
• State Appraisal Council to appraise and submit the project’s feasibility study report for the Prime Minister’s approval by September 2026.
• Localities and the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) to complete compensation, support, resettlement, and relocation of affected power infrastructure, essentially completing this before December 2026 to hand over the construction site to contractors.
• Selecting contractors for the project’s construction phase, signing contracts, and ensuring all conditions to begin construction by December 31, 2026.
• Commencing construction, procurement, and installation of equipment, with the project expected to be completed and operational by 2035 under Resolution No. 172/2024/QH15.

Regarding the urban development model based on Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) at high-speed railway stations, based on the station locations, localities must work with the Ministry of Construction to review, adjust zoning plans, and update planning, architectural, technical, and social infrastructure standards (if necessary) to implement land development projects based on TOD.

Localities will prepare and approve land exploitation projects based on TOD at high-speed railway stations.

Local governments will allocate budgetary funds for public investment projects, including compensation, support, and resettlement in the areas surrounding the railway stations to create land for auctions, enabling urban development in accordance with the law.

Auctioning land around railway stations will be conducted for urban development according to the law, generating revenue for local and central governments for reinvestment.

Ministers, heads of ministries and government agencies, and chairpersons of People’s Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities will focus on directing tasks, enhancing oversight, and reporting the results of project implementation to the Ministry of Construction for consolidation and reporting to the government. The National Steering Committee will monitor the implementation of the high-speed railway investment project and other key national railway projects to ensure coordination and effectiveness.

The preliminary land requirement for the project is approximately 10,827 hectares. The resettlement plan is expected to affect around 120,836 people. The North-South high-speed railway will be implemented as a public investment project, with a total investment of over 1.713 trillion VND (approximately 68 billion USD)

According to the electronic newspaper Nhip song thi truong