Vinh–Thanh Thủy Expressway to Break Ground in May 2026

Vinh–Thanh Thủy Expressway, a strategic national infrastructure project with a total investment of 23,940.34 billion VND, is being actively advanced by Nghệ An Province. The province targets breaking ground in May 2026 and aims to accelerate completion earlier than the central plan. The project is planned as a four-lane highway to be built in the 2025–2029 period and is divided into 10 component sub-projects.

Expediting land clearance

According to the project report, the entire route will affect 2,688 households, including 331 households with residential land and 2,357 households with agricultural or forest land. There are also 274 graves to relocate. Given the large scope of resettlement spread across multiple localities, the province said coordinated cooperation among levels, sectors, and localities is required.

The Project Management Board for Transport Infrastructure is currently finalizing documents to enable approval of 1–2 packages in May 2026, providing a basis to commence construction on schedule. Legally, the project has basically completed key procedures. The component construction dossier has received opinions from the State Audit Office. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Environment authorized the Chairman of Nghệ An Province to approve the environmental impact assessment report. Relevant agencies are appraising the feasibility study report, expected to be submitted for approval in April 2026.

For the nine component projects related to compensation, support, resettlement, and land clearance, approved so far, the province said this creates a basis for subsequent steps. Nghệ An Province has allocated 600 billion VND to communes to support these tasks.

Early land clearance results have been positive. Many localities have completed steps including cadastral extraction, surveying, counting, and public disclosure of compensation options. In Hưng Nguyên and Kim Liên, localities are reported to be ready to disburse payments and are expected to hand over land in the first phase within April 2026.

Parallel to land clearance, resettlement area development is underway. The project includes 12 resettlement areas for affected residents, plus one area for a firing range and one area for a fuel firm, each at different stages of investment preparation.

Relocation planning for technical infrastructure—such as the 500kV power system down to lower voltage and telecommunications networks—is being prepared with technical measures to align with construction progress and avoid disruption to a clean site. The province said coordination among departments and local authorities has improved compared with before.

Speaking at the meeting, Nghệ An Chairman Võ Trọng Hải emphasized that the expressway is a national key project with strategic significance for the province and the region. The objective, he said, is to implement it decisively and in a coordinated manner, ensuring progress, quality, and investment efficiency.

The Chairman urged localities to prioritize compensation, land clearance, and resettlement—described as the most important, complex, and urgent tasks. He also required the Project Management Board for Transport Infrastructure to complete on-site landmark marking before 30 April 2026 to enable localities to proceed with subsequent steps.

Under the schedule, land clearance for agricultural and forest land must be completed before 30 April. Compensation for residential land and resettlement must be completed before 30 June. All relocation of affected households must be completed before 30 August 2026.

Nghệ An also required compensation and support to be implemented transparently, with unified unit prices across the entire route. The Land Clearance Council is expected to operate effectively, objectively, and in compliance with regulations to avoid errors in counting, land type identification, and asset valuation.

Tightened discipline and quality controls for the project

To support rapid construction, the Chairman instructed the board to promptly finalize documents and submit them to the Department of Construction for appraisal of the feasibility study and environmental impact assessment. After completion, the Vice Chairman of Nghệ An will sign the approval decision.

Once approval is obtained, the Department of Finance will disburse funds in accordance with regulations. Related agencies must develop detailed plans to start at least 1–2 packages by 19 May 2026. The province’s target is to complete the project and put it into service by late 2028, more than a year earlier than the central plan.

The province also asked the Department of Agriculture and Environment to proactively secure construction materials, including careful surveying of quarries, sand and gravel pits, and dump sites. Police are tasked with strengthening checks on material extraction and transport to prevent exploitation.

Contractor bidding is required to be conducted strictly, ensuring bidders have the capacity and experience, with no bid-rigging or middlemen. For civil infrastructure works, the electrical utility and related units must coordinate with localities to accelerate relocations.

Emphasizing disciplinary and administrative order, the Chairman said organizations and individuals who delay or fail to meet deadlines will be seriously punished. He called for the mobilization of resources across the political system to implement the project as committed, while safeguarding the legitimate rights of residents and meeting national infrastructure development goals.