The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has signed a loan agreement worth USD290.08 million with the Government of Vietnam to fund the construction of Ho Chi Minh City Metro’s Line 1 (Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien section). This is the fourth loan approved for the transit project, following three previous loans in 2007, 2012, and 2016.
HCMC Metro Line 1 will span 19.7 km and connect Ben Thanh market in downtown HCMC to Long Binh depot in Thu Duc. The project will include three underground stations and 11 elevated stations. The total cost of the project is estimated to be VND43.7 trillion. As of December 2023, 97 per cent of the work has been completed. The project is expected to begin commercial operations in 2024.
The loan agreement was signed under the Special Terms for Economic Partnership (STEP). Under the terms of the loan, the project is required to use Japan-based companies as the main contracts or as the lead of the contractor joint venture and at least 30 per cent of the materials used need to be from Japan.
