The Korean government has pledged to finance US$500 million with the rest to be obtained from other sources, such as ODA loans and private loans through public-private partnerships.
The section will measure 14.56 kilometres including 13 stations, eight of which are underground. The second phase is an extension to the 8.89-kilometre section built in the initial phase.
The US$1.56 billion cost for the first phase, whose eight out of nine stations are underground, has been arranged but construction has yet to commence.
The information was revealed at a workshop held on November 24 by the Korea Railroad Research Institute, the Korea International Cooperation Agency and the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway Management Board (HRMB).
HRMB Deputy Head Hoang Nhu Cuong said Line 5 is an important line in the city’s metro system as it passes through Nguyen Van Linh Street and Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway as well as connecting other metro lines in HCMC.
Park Noh Wan, the Korean consul general in HCMC, said Korea would transfer technology, exchange experience and cooperate with Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City in particular to develop convenient metro systems for urban residents.
Ho Chi Minh City has planned a total of eight metro lines, one tramway line and two monorail lines but currently only metro Line 1 between Ben Thanh and Suoi Tien is under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2020.
Line 1 has a length of nearly 20 kilometres and consists of 14 stations, three of which are underground.
