Lam Dong: Many problems cause irrigation projects to stagnate

Project stalled, Central government withdrew capital

Firstly, package 5, the project to build a drainage culvert downstream of the central area of ​​Duc Trong district, has had to temporarily stop construction. The project is over 7km long, with a total investment of over 117 billion VND, of which the construction cost is over 67 billion VND. The consortium of contractors including Hung Nguyen Company Limited - HAG Investment and Construction Consulting Company Limited - Phan Dinh Construction Company Limited won the bid with a value of over 57 billion VND, construction time of 24 months, expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

However, after the groundbreaking ceremony on December 27, 2024, the contractor discovered many shortcomings: the site had not yet been decided to reclaim the land, had not been cleared, and the people did not allow construction; the actual geology was different from the survey records - black mud, table rock - could not be used as embankment as designed. The contractor said that it was impossible to continue construction without adjusting the design, avoiding the risk of disputes and wasting the budget.

Similarly, the project to prevent landslides and reduce flooding of Da Tam stream (Hiep An commune) invested by the Duc Trong District Project Management Board for Construction Investment and Public Works with a total capital of 48.5 billion VND, of which the emergency capital for natural disaster prevention and control from the central budget is 43.5 billion VND, is also having to stop construction. In this project, the consortium of contractors including 468 Construction and Investment Joint Stock Company - Hong Lam Construction Company Limited - Truong An Construction Company Limited won the bid. The project started in October 2024, so far only completed 3/5 of the culverts and has been suspended since after the Lunar New Year 2025.

The contractor representative said that the reason for stopping construction was because there was no construction site, the design documents provided by the investor when inviting bids were not consistent with the reality on the site, and the terrain and geology were very complicated.

By the time the central government withdrew its capital, the investor had disbursed 20% of the capital allocated from the central budget. The reason for the project's slow progress and withdrawal of capital from the investor was due to heavy rains, high groundwater levels leading to difficult construction; difficulties with scarce materials...

Struggling to remove obstacles

Regarding the project to build a drainage culvert downstream of the central area of ​​Duc Trong district, Mr. Vo Van Thuong - Deputy Head of the Duc Trong District Public Works and Construction Investment Project Management Board - Project Investor said that so far, only 85% of households have been inventoried, and about 10 - 15 landowners have not been contacted. Although the site clearance has not been completed, the investor has verbally agreed with the people to hand over about 1km of construction site to the construction unit.

The project to build a dike to prevent landslides and reduce flooding in Da Tam stream is also under construction.

The construction unit has only excavated about 400m of land when it encountered a ground that was different from the design. The unit proposed to adjust the entire project, increasing the cost by 20 billion VND. However, the investor proposed a flexible solution: handle the arising problems as construction progresses, and establish separate payment procedures. According to the investor, the parties have reached an oral agreement and are completing the official agreement. The Board also believes that the design deviation is the responsibility of the consulting unit.

Regarding the project of embankment to prevent landslides and reduce flooding of Da Tam stream, the leader of the Duc Trong Project Management Board for Construction Investment and Public Works said that the construction unit proposed 3 technical adjustment options, including 2 options that increased the cost by 200 million and 3.5 billion VND respectively. The investor requested the construction unit to implement in practice, and if there are geological differences compared to the design, they should handle them by raising the bottom of the ditch, adjusting the slope or drilling and chiseling the rock. This option does not increase the capital and the investor requested the construction unit to test a section and then evaluate further. If it is not feasible, the remaining 2 solutions will be implemented.

According to the investor, the main reason why the construction unit is worried is the capital source and the project implementation period. Regarding capital, the Management Board has reported and the Duc Trong District People's Committee has agreed to allocate capital from the local budget, currently waiting for the opinion of the Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee. For now, the investor has basically agreed with the construction unit on the above solution, the construction unit has agreed to soon arrange machinery to work on the field.

The representative of the investor admitted that the two important projects mentioned above were behind schedule due to subjective reasons, in addition to objective errors, specifically the geological survey and assessment. The Board is currently working hard with relevant parties to resume construction of the projects soon, especially when the rainy season is approaching. On the morning of April 14, Mr. Vo Van Thuong - Deputy Head of the Management Board of Construction Investment Projects and Public Works of Duc Trong District said that he had invited the construction units of the two above projects to work and reach a written agreement to resume construction soon.

Mai Long

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/lam-dong-nhieu-vuong-mac-khien-cac-du-an-thuy-loi-ngung-tre-post545408.html