HCMC – Dong Nai City has ordered all land acquisition, compensation and resettlement work for the metro extension linking HCMC’s Metro Line No. 1 with Long Thanh International Airport to be completed by December 31.

The order covers the recovery of 192.5 hectares of land for the 44.6-kilometer metro line, with authorities requiring measurement, inventory and asset verification procedures to be accelerated and dedicated teams to work through weekends and holidays to meet the deadline. The requirements were set out in Plan No. 99/KH-UBND issued by the Dong Nai City People’s Committee, which designated site clearance for the project as a priority task and assigned responsibility to local authorities and relevant departments. The metro extension, connecting HCMC with Dong Nai City, including Long Thanh International Airport, is estimated to cost VND60.3 trillion, including around VND4.3 trillion for compensation and resettlement. The public-private partnership (PPP) project is scheduled for implementation during 2025-2029. The route will pass through several key urban and industrial areas, including Tran Bien, Bien Hoa, Long Hung, Phuoc Tan, Tam Phuoc, An Phuoc, Nhon Trach and Long Thanh. Transit-oriented development zones are also planned along the corridor. Authorities said they are seeking to avoid delays that have plagued major infrastructure projects in the past, where bottlenecks in compensation and cadastral surveys often pushed up costs and slowed the mobilization of public and private capital. The provincial Department of Finance has been tasked with proposing flexible funding arrangements from the local budget and other lawful sources to ensure compensation payments are made promptly and avoid delays after approvals are issued. Meanwhile, land and environment agencies will coordinate with the Land Registration Office to accurately identify affected plots and minimize disputes. Local authorities have also been instructed to engage with residents in areas along the route to build consensus and facilitate site handover. Timely completion of land clearance is considered crucial to keeping the project on schedule and achieving the target of putting the metro line into operation in 2029, creating a direct rail link between HCMC and Long Thanh International Airport.