VietNamNet Bridge – The government of HCM City on Friday signed a US$450-million contract with a private company for a project to prevent tidal flooding in a 570-sq km area of the city.

The government of HCM City on Friday signed a US$450-million contract with a private company for a project to prevent tidal flooding in a 570-sq km area of the city.— Photo chinhphu.vn

The aim is to prevent flooding in an area where 6.5 million people live in the inner city and along the bank of the Sai Gon River.

With the first phase of the Build – Operate project, Trung Nam Group will focus on building six large sluice gates as well as embankments, drains and three pumping stations.

The developer will handle construction work at its own expense in exchange for rights to the land for its other projects.

The targeted districts are 1, 4, 7, 8, Nha Be and Binh Chanh.

The sluice gates are also expected to regulate the water level in canals to improve drainage capacity, taking into account climate-change factors, according to the company.

The project will build a dyke section along the Sai Gon River from the Vam Thuat River to the Kinh River, and 25 small sluices from the Vam Thuat River to the Muong Chuoi River.

The project will ensure the normal operation of boats.

The project, funded by the Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BIDV) and invested under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode, will be implemented late this month and completed in 36 months.

At a meeting early this year, the municipal authority announced that it would earmark more than VND156 trillion ($6.85 billion) for anti-flooding projects over the next five years.

VNS