Nguyen Huu Canh street in HCM City’s Binh Thanh district is flooded after heavy rains (VNA File Photo) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Despite great efforts taken by Ho Chi Minh City’sauthorities to fight flooding, many flood-control projects have been delayed byadministrative procedures.
Residents of certain areas in the city havesuffered from floods for decades, especially in the rainy season when roads andhouses are flooded at high tide.
One of the city’s seven key economic developmentprogrammes in the 2016-2020 period, the flood combating programme has calledfor investment from the private sector
Investments were mobilised to build a hugepumping system on Nguyen Huu Canh street in Binh Thanh district and to combathigh tides caused by climate change.
With an investment of nearly 10 trillion VND (427.6million USD), construction of the first stage of the project to combat floodingcaused by high tides began in June 2016.
The project covered 570 sq.km area with apopulation of 6.5 million on the right bank of the Sai Gon River and the downtownarea of the city. Construction was scheduled to last 36 months and end in Junenext year.
The investors of the project later saidconstruction would be completed in 24 months, and said if the site had beentransferred to the investors in due time, site clearance would have beencompleted by April.
However, on April 27 this year, the investorsaid construction had been suspended because the city authority had not “signedpapers for the bank to provide funds” for the project. Construction was alsohindered due to delays in site clearance.
The project, invested in by the Quang TrungGroup, includes the huge pump on Nguyen Huu Canh street in Binh Thanh district.
But the project was suspended on August 31 dueto “financial problems” facing Quang Trung Group.
According to the Quang Trung Group, the pump hasbeen operating on Nguyen Huu Canh street for two years, but the steering boardof HCM City’s flood combating programme has not set rental rates for the pump.
The company’s request to advance funds for operationof the pump has not been met, according to the Quang Trung Group.
Nguyen Tang Cuong, CEO of the Quang Trung Group,said the pump had been used on 30 occasions, helping to control floods on NguyenHuu Canh street.
The Quang Trung Group had spent several yearsstudying the flooding situation in the area, and had operated the pump in thelast two rainy seasons. But the company had no more funds to operate the pump,Cuong added.
At a press meeting last week, Nguyen Tam Tien,CEO of Trung Nam Group, the investor of the project which aims to preventfloods from high tides, said construction of the project had stopped becausefunding had been suspended since April 27.
The suspension has caused losses of about 17billion VND to 20 billion VND per month.
Tien said 72 percent of the construction of theproject had been completed before suspension.-VNS/VNA
Residents of certain areas in the city havesuffered from floods for decades, especially in the rainy season when roads andhouses are flooded at high tide.
One of the city’s seven key economic developmentprogrammes in the 2016-2020 period, the flood combating programme has calledfor investment from the private sector
Investments were mobilised to build a hugepumping system on Nguyen Huu Canh street in Binh Thanh district and to combathigh tides caused by climate change.
With an investment of nearly 10 trillion VND (427.6million USD), construction of the first stage of the project to combat floodingcaused by high tides began in June 2016.
The project covered 570 sq.km area with apopulation of 6.5 million on the right bank of the Sai Gon River and the downtownarea of the city. Construction was scheduled to last 36 months and end in Junenext year.
The investors of the project later saidconstruction would be completed in 24 months, and said if the site had beentransferred to the investors in due time, site clearance would have beencompleted by April.
However, on April 27 this year, the investorsaid construction had been suspended because the city authority had not “signedpapers for the bank to provide funds” for the project. Construction was alsohindered due to delays in site clearance.
The project, invested in by the Quang TrungGroup, includes the huge pump on Nguyen Huu Canh street in Binh Thanh district.
But the project was suspended on August 31 dueto “financial problems” facing Quang Trung Group.
According to the Quang Trung Group, the pump hasbeen operating on Nguyen Huu Canh street for two years, but the steering boardof HCM City’s flood combating programme has not set rental rates for the pump.
The company’s request to advance funds for operationof the pump has not been met, according to the Quang Trung Group.
Nguyen Tang Cuong, CEO of the Quang Trung Group,said the pump had been used on 30 occasions, helping to control floods on NguyenHuu Canh street.
The Quang Trung Group had spent several yearsstudying the flooding situation in the area, and had operated the pump in thelast two rainy seasons. But the company had no more funds to operate the pump,Cuong added.
At a press meeting last week, Nguyen Tam Tien,CEO of Trung Nam Group, the investor of the project which aims to preventfloods from high tides, said construction of the project had stopped becausefunding had been suspended since April 27.
The suspension has caused losses of about 17billion VND to 20 billion VND per month.
Tien said 72 percent of the construction of theproject had been completed before suspension.-VNS/VNA
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