Minister Nguyen Hong Dien - Standing Deputy Head of the Steering Committee acknowledged that since the previous briefing meeting, thanks to the proactive involvement and strong leadership of the provincial Party Committees, People's Committees, and relevant departments and districts, the project has achieved positive results in site handover for foundation positions, temporary construction road development, and approval of full utilization of forest product plans.

To ensure the project's progress and quality, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien - Standing Deputy Head of the Steering Committee - required the People's Committees of Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Phu Tho, and Vinh Phuc provinces to continue mobilizing the entire political system to take action, decisively directing the implementation of site clearance and supporting the investor during the construction process; intensify in public communication and mobilization to gain local residents' consensus, support, and facilitation for site handover and construction activities. The "four on-site" approach should be applied to accelerate the project's construction progress.

Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien delivers directives

Provinces must promptly approve specific land prices and officially issue compensation and resettlement support plans for pole foundation locations by March 31, 2025; Complete the assessment, planning, and approval of compensation and resettlement support for the transmission corridor by April 15, 2025; Mobilize local residents to hand over all remaining foundation positions within March 2025 and complete the handover of the entire corridor before April 30, 2025.

For Vinh Phuc Provincial People's Committee, Comrade Nguyen Hong Dien instructed coordination with the Ministry of National Defense and the Armored Corps to expedite land recovery procedures and hand over position 462, located within the Comprehensive Armored Training Center, by March 2025. Vinh Phuc authorities must direct Tam Dao Irrigation Company Ltd. to cooperate and support the investor and contractor in completing permit applications for construction at tower location 455, within the protection zone of Ban Long reservoir, ensuring submission to the competent authority for approval before April 5, 2025.

Comrade Nguyen Hong Dien required the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Finance to promptly provide their opinions on issues related to position 462, enabling the provincial People's Committees to proceed with land recovery procedures, hand over the site, and approve the Temporary forest use plan for construction purposes.

At the same time, he recommended the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to direct Tam Dao National Park to expedite the preparation and approval of the full utilization of the forest product plan before March 31, 2025, while considering allowing contractors to survey, cut down trees within temporary roads, storage sites, foundation positions, and gather materials at designated locations to ensure site readiness for construction.

EVN and contractors have been actively carrying out construction at foundation sites of Lao Cai - Vinh Yen 500kV transmission line. Photo: Ng. Tuan

Regarding EVN, the Minister of Industry and Trade directed the group to continue coordinating with local authorities to finalize documentation and procedures related to compensation, site clearance, and payment to affected residents, while also persuading them to hand over the land. Contractors and construction units are required to increase workforce, materials, and equipment, ensuring immediate commencement of work as soon as the site is available and construction conditions are met. They must take advantage of the favorable weather conditions to accelerate the project’s progress, as the rainy season in the next two months will pose difficulties for construction. Additionally, EVN must complete the contractor selection process for the remaining bidding packages, ensuring transparency, legality, and compliance with regulations.

The Minister also instructed EVN to continue working with local authorities to intensify public outreach efforts, encouraging residents to support compensation, site clearance, and the construction of temporary access roads. Investors and contractors must ensure environmental protection throughout the project implementation.

The Lao Cai - Vinh Yen 500kV transmission line project is critical for evacuating the power output from hydropower plants in the Northwest region, transmitting electricity imported from China, and meeting the growing electricity demand in the coming years, contributing to ensuring national energy security, especially in the context of the economy growing at a double-digit rate in the coming years. The project was officially launched by the Prime Minister on March 16, 2025, with the goal of completing construction before August 31, 2025.

Translator: Thu Hường