HCMC – The Mekong Delta province of Can Tho plans to import sand from Cambodia due to an inadequate supply of the material for the Chau Doc–Can Tho–Soc Trang expressway project.

Last weekend, Deputy Minister of Construction Le Quang Hung worked with the provincial governments of Can Tho and Hau Giang on the construction progress of the first phase of the Chau Doc–Can Tho–Soc Trang expressway, which is part of the North-South expressway project.

Can Tho and Hau Giang are concerned about a lack of building material for the work.

The Chau Doc–Can Tho–Soc Trang expressway needs some five million cubic meters of fill sand and 600,000 cubic meters of construction sand. Besides, Can Tho is carrying out the Western Beltway No. 3 project, which requires an additional 1.7 million cubic meters of sand.

Can Tho has tried to buy the sand from its neighbors, An Giang and Dong Thap provinces. However, the two provinces have yet to respond to its proposal.

Meanwhile, the plan to use the sea sand of Soc Trang and Kien Giang provinces remains unfeasible, so the province has sent delegates to Cambodia in search of suppliers.

The first phase of the Chau Doc–Can Tho–Soc Trang expressway in the Mekong Delta is estimated to require over VND44.6 trillion. With a total length of 188.2 kilometers and a width of 17 meters, the route will pass through four localities in the delta — An Giang, Can Tho, Hau Giang and Soc Trang.

Under the project’s plan, the road will have six lanes and be built before 2030.

The route is expected to reduce pressure on National Highway 1 and the overloaded National Highway 91 while contributing to the completion of the regional traffic network and promoting the socioeconomic development of the Western provinces.

The section through Can Tho will be some 37 kilometers and need over VND9.8 trillion.