The city's Department of Construction has asked the Ministry of Construction to review the project's feasibility study for implementation under a public-private partnership using a build-transfer (BT) contract.
Current Vietnamese seaport plans cover the 2021-2030 period with a vision to 2050, while the proposed sea crossing is designed to last more than 100 years.
Maritime authorities have therefore recommended that forecasts and planning for vessels, shipping channels and ports also adopt a 100-year outlook.
As the route will cross Ganh Rai Bay and shipping channels serving the Cai Mep-Thi Vai port complex, its design must also accommodate long-term maritime development.
Consultants and investors have been asked to assess future cargo volumes through Ganh Rai Bay, the number and width of main and secondary shipping channels, future vessel sizes and types, as well as water levels and channel depths.
Safety assessments will also cover clearance above the immersed tunnel, sedimentation and erosion, temporary construction channels and navigation clearances for inland waterways.
At the Vung Tau-Thi Vai shipping channel, the project will include an immersed tunnel and two artificial islands connecting the tunnel with bridge sections.
The tunnel must be deep enough to allow vessels to navigate safely above it, including larger ships that could operate in the area in the future.
Following ministry feedback, the investor consortium has revised and resubmitted the feasibility study, adding maritime assessments and forecasts with a 100-year outlook.
The HCM City Department of Construction is working with the ministry and relevant agencies to ensure the sea crossing integrates safely with the region's major shipping routes.
The Can Gio-Vung Tau sea crossing is undergoing feasibility appraisal and is expected to support Can Gio's coastal urban development while providing a new road link between central HCM City and Vung Tau.
The planned route will stretch more than 14 kilometres, including nearly 1.9 kilometres of approach roads, eight kilometres of sea-crossing structures, a 295-metre bridge-to-tunnel connection and a 3.85-kilometre undersea tunnel.
It will have six lanes and a design speed of 80 kilometres per hour, occupying more than 169 hectares of land and water.
The project is estimated to cost over VND 93 trillion (USD 3.54 billion), with more than 70 per cent covered by land allocated to the investor and nearly VND 28 trillion from the city budget.
