Circular No. 14/2023/TT-BXD Amends and supplements certain provisions of Circular No. 11/2021/TT-BXD dated August 31, 2021, issued by the Minister of Construction guiding certain contents on determining and managing construction investment costs.

CIRCULAR

Amending and supplementing certain articles of Circular No. 11/2021/TT-BXD dated August 31, 2021, issued by the Minister of Construction guiding certain contents on determining and managing construction investment costs On the basis of the Construction Law dated June 18, 2014; the Law amending and supplementing certain articles of the Construction Law dated June 17, 2020;

At the proposal of the Director of the Construction Economy Department;
The Minister of Construction issues this Circular amending and supplementing certain articles of Circular No. 11/2021/TT-BXD dated August 31, 2021, issued by the Minister of Construction guiding certain contents on determining and managing construction investment costs.

WHEREAS Decree No. 52/2022/NĐ-CP dated August 8, 2022 of the Government stipulating functions, tasks, authorities, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

Pursuant to Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP dated February 9, 2021 of the Government on management of investment costs for construction;

Article 1. Amending and supplementing certain articles of Circular No. 11/2021/TT-BXD dated August 31, 2021, issued by the Minister of Construction guiding certain contents on determining and managing construction investment costs

1. Amending and supplementing Article 8 as follows:

"Article 8. Management and publication of construction prices prescribed in Clause 2, Article 26 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP

1. Unit prices for construction projects published by the People's Committee of the province in accordance with Clause 2, Article 26 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP serve as the basis for determining and managing construction investment costs within the province. The unit prices for construction projects published by the People's Committee of the province are determined based on construction norms issued by competent authorities and the cost factors' prices specified in Clause 3, Clause 4, and Clause 5 of this Article, consistent with the time of determining the unit price for construction projects. Cost factors' prices include: material prices, labor unit prices, machinery and equipment rental prices.

2. Material prices, labor unit prices, machinery and equipment rental prices for construction projects are published periodically in accordance with Clause 2, Article 26 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP and the provisions of Clauses 3, 4, and 5 of this Article.
3. Management and publication of material prices:
a) Published material prices must be consistent with market prices, quality standards, origin, supply capacity, and scope at the time of publication. The list of materials to be published is selected based on the list of materials included in the normative system issued by competent authorities and the list of materials available in the market.
b) The Construction Department shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to conduct surveys, collect information, determine material prices in the locality; publish according to Model 01 of Appendix VIII of this Circular; send the publication results along with electronic data files (in a unified format) to the Ministry of Construction for monitoring, management, and updating into the database as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 29 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP.
c) In cases where necessary, the Construction Department may publish material prices monthly for types of materials that have fluctuations to meet the requirements of construction investment cost management. The publication date for quarterly material prices is before the 15th day of the first month of the next quarter, and for monthly material prices, it is before the 10th day of the following month.
4. Management and publication of labor unit prices:
a) Labor unit prices published in the locality must be consistent with local labor market wages, suitable to the characteristics and nature of construction work; including wages and allowances according to the nature of construction production and some expenses under the responsibility of workers as prescribed. Expenses under the responsibility of workers as prescribed include: social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, trade union fees, and other expenses.
b) The daily wage rate of construction workers is determined for the working hours specified (8 hours/day, 26 days/month) based on the group of direct production workers, consistent with their skill levels according to the worker grades in the normative system issued by state authorities.
c) The list of worker groups and grades and the method for determining labor unit prices are detailed in the Circular guiding the methods for determining economic and technical indicators and measuring construction volume.
d) The Construction Department shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies: implement or hire consultants with sufficient capabilities to conduct surveys, collect information, refer to the framework of labor unit prices published by the Ministry of Construction to determine labor unit prices in the locality; publish according to Model 2 of Appendix VIII of this Circular; send the publication results along with electronic data files (in a unified format) to the Ministry of Construction for monitoring, management, and updating into the database as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 29 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP.
đ) The publication date for annual labor unit prices is before January 15 of the following year.
5. Management and publication of machinery and equipment rental prices:
a) Published machinery and equipment rental prices must be consistent with the type, capacity, key technical indicators, and characteristics of each type of machine and equipment. The list of machines and equipment to be published is selected based on the list of machines and equipment included in the normative system issued by state authorities and the list of machines and equipment available in the market.
b) Machinery and equipment rental prices are determined for a working shift (8 hours) of machines and equipment, consistent with consumption norms and basic data for calculating machinery rental prices issued by the Ministry of Construction, consistent with the list of machines and equipment in the normative system issued by state authorities.
c) Machinery and equipment rental prices include all or some items such as depreciation costs, repair costs, fuel and energy costs, operator labor costs, and other costs. Machinery and equipment rental prices do not include the costs mentioned in Point b, Clause 6, Article 4 of this Circular.
d) Consumption norms, basic data for determining machinery rental prices, and the method for determining machinery and equipment rental prices are guided in the Circular guiding the methods for determining economic and technical indicators and measuring construction volume.
c) The hourly rate for construction machinery and equipment includes all or some of the following cost items: depreciation costs, repair costs, fuel and energy costs, operator labor costs, and other costs of the machinery. The hourly rate for construction machinery and equipment does not include the costs mentioned in point b, Clause 6, Article 4 of this Circular.
d) Consumption norms, basic data to determine the hourly rate for machinery, and the method to determine the hourly rate for construction machinery and equipment according to the guidance provided in the Circular on the methods to determine economic and technical indicators and to measure the volume of work.
đ) The Department of Construction shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to conduct surveys, collect information, refer to the original machine prices published by the Ministry of Construction to determine the machine prices and construction equipment prices within their jurisdiction; publish according to Model No. 3 in Appendix VIII of this Circular; send the publication results along with electronic data files (in a unified format) to the Ministry of Construction for monitoring, management, and updating into the database system as prescribed in Clause 3, Article 29 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP.
e) The time for publishing machine prices and construction equipment prices annually shall be before January 15 of the following year.
6. Enterprises producing and supplying building materials, construction labor; enterprises operating the provision and rental of construction machinery and equipment within their jurisdiction; project sponsors and contractors winning bids at investment construction projects shall be responsible for providing information on cost factors' prices for the Department of Construction to publish prices as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. Amendment and supplementation of Article 9 as follows:

"Article 9. Determination of Construction Project Prices

1. Construction project prices include detailed unit prices and comprehensive construction prices. Construction project prices shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 24 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP and detailed guidance provided in Appendix IV of this Circular.

2. Project sponsors shall use the construction project price system specified in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 26 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP and the provisions of Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 8 of this Circular as the basis for determining and managing investment construction costs. In cases where organizations determine construction project prices based on detailed unit prices or comprehensive construction prices based on construction norms, material prices, unit prices for construction labor, and machine prices and construction equipment prices shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of Clause 3, Clause 4, and Clause 5 of this Article.

3. Material Prices:

a) Material prices published by competent state authorities in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 8 of this Circular serve as the basis for determining construction project prices.

b) In cases where materials are not included in the published prices or are already included but the types of materials do not meet the requirements of standards, specifications, quality, supply capacity, and other specific conditions for each project, the material prices for determining construction project prices shall be collected, compiled, analyzed, and selected based on references to sources of information on material prices as guided in Point b, Section 1.2.1.1 of Appendix IV of this Circular. The selection of material prices must be objective, transparent, and ensure the effectiveness of the project.

c) It is encouraged to choose materials that conserve mineral resources, save energy, and are environmentally friendly when preparing feasibility studies, design plans, and determining investment construction costs for projects, but such choices must ensure investment efficiency and meet project requirements.

d) In cases where projects require the use of special materials not commonly available in the market or imported materials, specific explanations must be provided in the Preliminary Feasibility Study Report, Feasibility Study Report, Economic and Technical Report, and Design Explanation.

đ) Criteria for evaluating and considering when selecting material prices to determine construction project prices as guided in Point a, Section 1.2.1.1 of Appendix IV of this Circular.

e) The method for determining material prices at the construction site shall be carried out in accordance with the guidance provided in Section 1.2.1.2 of Appendix IV of this Circular.

4. Unit Prices for Construction Labor:

a) Unit prices for construction labor published by competent state authorities in accordance with Clause 4 of Article 8 of this Circular serve as the basis for determining construction project prices.

b) In cases where the unit prices for construction labor published by competent state authorities are not suitable for the characteristics of the work, project, or project, the project sponsor shall organize surveys to determine unit prices for construction labor according to the methods prescribed in the Circular guiding the determination of economic and technical indicators and volume stripping of construction projects to decide on application when determining construction project prices. During the process of determining unit prices for construction labor, the Department of Construction shall provide guidance on the accuracy and appropriateness of the basis and methods for determining unit prices for construction labor when requested by the project sponsor.

c) The project sponsor shall submit the results of the determination of unit prices for construction labor as stipulated in Point b of this Clause to the Department of Construction for monitoring and management; the submission of the results of the determination of unit prices for construction labor to the Department of Construction must reflect the basis, method, and results of the determination of unit prices for construction labor, and any forms (if applicable) according to the prescribed method; the Department of Construction shall compile and report to the Ministry of Construction annually.

5. Machine Prices and Construction Equipment Prices:

a) Machine prices and construction equipment prices published by competent state authorities in accordance with Clause 5 of Article 8 of this Circular serve as the basis for determining construction project prices.

b) In cases where machine prices and construction equipment prices have not been published by competent state authorities or are already published but are not suitable for the usage requirements and construction conditions of the project, the project sponsor shall organize surveys to determine machine prices and construction equipment prices according to the methods prescribed in the Circular guiding the determination of economic and technical indicators and volume stripping of construction projects to decide on application when determining construction project prices. During the process of determining machine prices and construction equipment prices, the Department of Construction shall provide guidance on the accuracy and appropriateness of the basis and methods for determining machine prices and construction equipment prices when requested by the project sponsor.

c) The project sponsor shall submit the results of the determination of machine prices and construction equipment prices as stipulated in Point b of this Clause to the Department of Construction for monitoring and management; the submission of the results of the determination of machine prices and construction equipment prices to the Department of Construction must reflect the basis, method, and results of the determination of machine prices and construction equipment prices, and any forms (if applicable) according to the prescribed method; the Department of Construction shall compile and report to the Ministry of Construction annually.

6. For construction projects built on the territory of two or more provincial administrative units, the project investor shall organize the determination of the construction cost of the project in accordance with Clause 3, Article 26 of Decree No. 10/2021/NĐ-CP to ensure convenience in determining costs, economy and efficiency of the project, and suitability with the supply capacity of resources according to the implementation plan.

Article 2. Amend and supplement some Appendices issued together with Circular No. 11/2021/TT-BXD as set out in the Appendix issued together with this Circular.

Article 3. Implementation Provisions

This Circular takes effect from February 15, 2024.