Finally it's possible to travel on railway from Kunming in China to Vientiane in Laos: On April 13 the first trains left Kunming and Vientiane and arrived 10-and-half-hours later at their destination. The 1,000-kilometer rail line, which links the capital of China’s Yunnan province to the capital of Laos, had been completed in December 2021, but due to Chinas’s strict “zero COVID” policies, the border of China and Laos could not be crossed.
Now the fast train between Vientiane and Kunming South Station is running daily in both directions, starting at 8:08 am and arriving at 19.38 in Kunming (China time) and 17.38 in Vientiane. First class tickets for the full journey are available for 760 yuan ($110) while second-class tickets are priced at 470 yuan ($68). Laos-China Railway Company Limited (LCR) have launched an App on Google Play, iOS and Huawei to allow passengers to purchase LCR train tickets on their mobile phones using UnionPay cards. The service is operated with green bullet trains of China Railway and the Lanexang EMU trains of Lao-China-Railway. Find more informations on Hobomap.
For the border checks the passengers have to leave the train in Mohan (China) and Boten (Laos) with all their belongings. The stops will take 90 minutes.
The China-Laos Railway started cross-border passenger services last Thursday, with the first passenger train departing from Kunming, the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, and heading for the Lao capital Vientiane. pic.twitter.com/efhw3Q85Qq
Trip in a local train (green train) from Vang Vieng to Kasi with sights
See the timetable and fares on Hobo Maps. They update the timetable every month.
Tickets can be purchased up to 3 days in advance at the stations and each person can only buy 3 tickets at a time. You have to present passenger identification documents and Covid-19 vaccination certificate, your name will be printed on the ticket. Payment must be in cash. If you don’t have a ticket, you should arrive at least two hours before departure time because you have to queue for ticket purchase and again for entry to the station and then go through security checks.
There are also ticket sales offices in central Luang Prabang and on the ground floor of the shopping mall Vientiane Center in central Vientiane. Each person can only get 2 tickets. Payment can only be made by UnionPay card or by QR Code (OnePay, UnionPay, Alipay and Wechat) at a POS machine. A service fee of 20,000 kip per ticket is charged. Hours are 10:00 am to 12:00 noon and from 12:30 pm to 15:30 pm each day.
Discover Laos Today offers a online ticket booking system for Laos-China railway. In Vientiane you can self-collect the ticket at Discover Laos Today office at ASEAN Mall from 9 am to 5 pm or they deliver to your hotel for 3$/way. In Luang Prabang you can self-collect at Discover Laos Today office at MyLaoHome Hotel and Spa behind Joma Bakery from 9 am to 5 pm or you get the ticket delivered to your hotel.
The Laos-China Railway Company Limited's Facebook page has info on how many tickets remain available for sale. https://www.facebook.com/LaosChinaRailway/
On the fast trains passengers are allowed to carry a baggage up to 20 kilogram. On ordinary trains there is no baggage limit.
Officials from China and Laos marked the official launch of the $5.9 billion railway connecting the two nations on December 3. The first passenger services were running on December 4. The first red, blue and white bullet train called Lane Xang departed from Vientiane station. It can reach 160 kph. The standard gauge single-track line cuts through 417 kilometers of rugged terrain from Vientiane to Boten, the main border crossing with China. The line includes 61 kilometers of bridges (167) and 198 kilometers of tunnels. The travel from Vientiane to the Chinese border, which so far took around 15 hours by road, now takes less than four hours. "The Laos-China Railway is part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Beijing’s $1 trillion transnational development strategy that aims at connecting China with over 70 countries across Asia, Africa, and Europe via the construction of roads, rails, seaports, and airports", describes The Diplomat.
No way to China for passengers right now
Right now passenger services are only offered inside Laos. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the border between Laos and China is not open for passengertrains. But freight trains are running now between the two countries. Lao-China Railways has stated that once the immigration prohibition will be lifted after 1 January 2022 they would extend the services to Sipsongpanna station at Jinhong city in Yunnan. The CR200J Fuxing EMU trains take about three and a half hours from Kunming to Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture and less than three hours to Puer.
Passenger trains also started on Yuxi-Mohan line in China
According to Chinese news agency Xinhua the passenger trains on the line from Yuxi to Mohan in Yunnan have started operation also on December 3. Until December 9 a total of 114,000 passengers have been transported. The number of trains running on the line meanwhile have been increased from 17.5 pairs to 25.5 pairs. The new line ends the history of no rail service between Puer and Xishuangbanna. There are 93 tunnels and 136 bridges in the 508-kilometer segment. 15 tunnels are more than 10 kilometers long.
Laos opens the borders for international tourist groups
Laos has officially announced it will reopen for tourism on 1 January 2022 after the lockdown due to the pandemic. According to the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism, the reopening will be implemented in three phases. The first phase will be from 1 January to 30 March 2022, the second phase from 1 April 2022 to 30 June 2022, and the third phase from 1 July 2022 onward.
During the first phase tourists from the following countries will be allowed in: China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, France, United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, United States, Canada, and Australia. Tourism will be restricted to group tours at first, with tours arranged by authorized tour operators under the Lao Travel Green Zone Plan.
Tourists must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 no less than 14 days prior to arrival. They need a health insurance policy with coverage no less than USD 50,000 and a negative RT-PCR test taken within the last 72 hours. Arrivals will be tested for Covid-19 and placed in a 24-hour quarantine in their hotel until a negative result is found. Tourists have to download and register at the LaoKYC and the LaoStaySafe mobile applications prior to arriving in the country and to upload their vaccination certification and Covid-19 test results.
Tourists will be authorized to travel within two zones: Green Travel Zones and Green Travel Trails. During Phase 1 tourists may visit the following green travel zones with at least 70 percent of the population vaccinated: Vientiane Capital, Luang Prabang Province and Vang Vieng District in Vientiane Province. Meanwhile, five provinces will be authorized for Green Travel Trails, including Oudomxay, Xayaboury, Xieng Khouang, Khammouane, and Champasak. Read more details on Laotian Times.
The timetable of the new railway
The following timetable has been published: Vientiane - Boten:
Vientiane dep 08:00
Phonhong dep 09:04
Luang Prabang dep 10:01
Meuang Xay dep 10:49
Boten arr 11:20
Luang Prabang - Vientiane
Luang Prabang dep 18:30
Vang Vieng dep 19:44
Phon Hong dep 20:15
Vientiane arr 20:46
A ticket costs of 330,000 Kip (around $33) for a second class seat from Vientiane to Boten. More ticket prices here. Passengers need to make 3-day reservation in advance and arrive at the station 1 hour before departure
Laos debts after the financing of China-Laos-Railway
"Laos opens scenic railway built on a mountain of Chinese debt", writes Yahoo News. In December 2016 Lao-China Railway Company — a joint venture between three Chinese state-owned enterprises that collectively hold a 70% ownership stake and one Lao state-owned enterprise that owns a 30% ownership stake — signed a BOT concession agreement with the Government of Laos for the China-Laos Railway Project.
Lao-China Railway Company directly secured $3.54 billion of debt financing from China Eximbank while the government of Laos and the Chinese Government jointly contributed $730 million and $1.63 billion of equity financing. Interestingly to make its own share of $730 million equity contribution to the rail project, the Government of Laos secured a $480 million loan from China Eximbank.
The government of Laos is hopeful the railway will turn a profit by 2027. But: With a tiny domestic market, there is "limited commercial logic for an expensive railway" to connect the country of seven million to Kunming, said Jonathan Andrew Lane in an Asian Development Bank Institute report. "That debt service will put further strain on the limited tax-raising abilities of the government," Lane wrote. In September 2021, Laos sold its electricity transmission grid for $600 million with a 25-year concession agreement, that allows a majority Chinese state-owned company to build and manage a large part of the country’s power grid.
What happens in Boten, at the border of Laos with China
In "Boten: the renaissance of Laos' Golden city" documentary photographer Nicholas Bosoni describes how Boten, a rural village counting a few hundred inhabitants less than twenty years ago, is shaping up as China’s gateway to Laos and Southeast Asia, this in form of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ). The Haicheng group, a Yunnan-based developer, presented a $10 billion to transform the former “Golden City” into “Boten Beautiful Land Specific Economic Zone.” The developers estimate that 300,000 people will live in Boten by 2035.
The China-Laos railway ends at the Vientiane south cargo station. There are plans to upgrade the first Thai-Lao friendship bridge linking Vientiane and Nong Khai across Mekong river because the bridge is too small with limited capacity to expand. The railway crossing the Mekong bridge from Nong Khai in Thailand to Thanaleng in Laos has a one metre gauge, while the China-Laos railway has a standard gauge with 1.45 metres. Piti Srisangnam, director of academic affairs at the Asean Studies Centre at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, told Bangkok Post, there was no need to wait for the state to build a Bangkok-Nong Khai line with standard gauge, as containers could be delivered to Vientiane using the existing narrow gauge. "Obviously, it won't be as smooth as if the same gauge applied all the way to China, but there are many other things we can start improving, such as border crossings, customs, logistics needed for handling a massive amount of container traffic, and better visa connections between three countries."
Bangkok–Nong Khai high-speed railway is partially under construction as a double-track standard-gauge line that follows the same route as the current Northeastern line. it's being built in partnership with Chinese companies (China Railway International and China Railway Design Corp). The first stage between Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima is scheduled to open in 2026. Phase 1 means the construction of the 253km section between Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima, at a cost of $1.67 billion USD with the stations Bang Sue, Don Muang, Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Pak Chong and Nakhon Ratchasima. Phase 2 of the 354.5km section from Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai is still under planning. The stations will include Nakhon Ratchasima, Bua Yai, Ban Phai, Khon Kaen, Udon Thani, and Nong Khai according to futuresoutheastasia.com.
Meanwhile in Thailand there are concerns about products from China flooding markets in Thailand. Opposition MPs submitted a motion to question the government following a report that 33 containers with 20 tonnes each of fresh vegetables from China were sent to Thailand in the first week of December, reports Bangkok Post. The development is challenging to Thailand as Chinese fresh produce can be sent to the Thai border in one day at a much cheaper cost than air transport. The Chinese government has erected non tariff trade barriers for exporting fruits and Durain from Thailand to China.
Find technical informations, list of planned stations and maps here.
Update 26.12.2020
The Laos-China Railway Co. is to develop areas surrounding railway stations in Vientiane Capital, Vientiane Province, Oudomxay, and Luang Prabang. The government of Laos signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the company, reports laotiantimes.com.
Xiang Ngeun Number 3 Tunnel in Luang Prabang Province has been drilled through on 29 september. Now all of the 75 tunnels of China Laos Railway have been constructed.
Update 31.12.2020
Track laying fro China-Laos-Railway has arrived in Luang Prabang at the end of December 2020.
#China-#Laos railway (422km) tracks have successfully extended from Vientiane to N Lao PDR’s transporthub Luang Prabang (240km), accomplishing all construction targets set at the beginning of 2020! Major #BRI projects in ASEAN countries make progress day by day, despite COVID19. pic.twitter.com/WjO2S6jyG9
The track laying of the China-Laos-Railway project, undertaken by CREC, has exceeded 100 km and has reached Vang Vieng Station in Laos in July 2020, what means that 25 percent of the track was laid. In November 2020 the track laying reached Ban Sen No.2 Tunnel.
This week, the track-laying project of #China-#Laos#Railway officially entered the longest tunnel of the entire line - Ban Sen No.2 Tunnel of 9384m. It will then go all the way north to realize the interim target of connecting Luang Prabang by year-end. #ASEAN#Connectivitypic.twitter.com/KtXpT4wfiI
In September 2020 the 9 km long Ban Phoukeu tunnel in Muang Nga province was drilled through by China Railway No. 8 Engineering Group.
A Chinese engineering company has finished drilling the nearly 9-km long Ban Phoukeu Tunnel, the last major long tunnel along the China-Laos Railway route #BeltandRoadpic.twitter.com/pfBZtrsMtt
In September 2020 the main building of Nateuy station was finished by China Railway Construction Engineering Group (CRCEG).
The main building of Nateuy station, the first and a key station along the #China-#Laos#railway, finished building on Wednesday. The 422-km China-Laos Railway is scheduled to open to traffic on Dec 2021 with the speed of 160 km per hour pic.twitter.com/TA1ll5y3Qj
Friendship Tunnel 友谊隧道 crossing the border between Laos an China in Boten with a total length of 9,959 meters has been drilled through by China Railway No. 2 Engineering Group (CREC-2) after 37 months of work. See pictures.
Track laying has started in Vientiane. And now tracks have been laid in the first tunnel, Baan Nong Khai tunnel in Vientiane province.
Near Vientiane the first 500 metres of railway tracks have been laid. After reduced working during the coronavirus outbreak in China the track lying period has been compressed. The plan is to lay 1,5 kilometers of track every day. Read more.
Boten Special Economic Zone has fallen silent due to the coronavirus pandemic, reports rfa.org. Construction works have been stopped and stores and restaurants are closed, because few Chinese managers, technicians or tourists are showing up. Chinas Peopke Daily, a government controlled newspaper, turns it like this: "China’s investment projects in Laos gradually resume operation amid the epidemic outbreak". The work on crossborder friendship tunnel has resumed according to Crec-2. Only "some" of China’s investment projects have resumed their production and construction according to this report. One example is Vientiane Saysettha Development Zone, co-founded by China Yunnan Construction and Investment Holding Group Co., Ltd (YCIH) and the Vientiane Municipal Government. The Vientiane-Vangvieng Expressway construction has officially resumed on February 10 according to this report (also constructed by China Yunnan Construction and Investment Holding Group Co.).
on 15.3.2020 China Railway Wuhan Electrification Engineering Group Co., Ltd. (WEEG) planted the first engineering pole for overhead contact system at the construction site of the China-Laos railway project in Vientiane, Laos. Also the power supply project, running along the China-Laos railway through five provincial administrative regions in northern Laos, has started. Planned are 20 circuits of 115 kV transmission lines with the total length of 268 km and 635 power towers and extend 11 bays in 10 substations, in order to supply power from the state-run Electricite du Laos grid to 10 railway traction substations. The project is invested and built by a joint venture, namely Laos-China Power Investment Company, co-sponsored by China Southern Power Grid (CSG) and the state-run Electricite du Laos, and implemented mainly by CSG’s engineering companies.
Update 28.2.2020
Construction work on tunnels in Vientiane province is filling a creek and other local waterways with waste released by boring, polluting the water and harming the livelihoods of local residents, reports rfa.org. Water in the Houay Pamom Creek in the area of the Vang Vieng district’s Phahom village is murky and clouded. “Chemicals are flowing from Kai district, where a railway tunnel is being bored. The railway workers are spraying liquid cement onto the tunnel wall,” one village resident said. Houay Pamom Creek is a tributary of the larger Nam Song River, a popular location for swimming, tubing, and kayaking. Another Nam Song tributary — the Nam Lik River — was polluted more than a week ago by waste released from the construction of another railway tunnel, with the run-off killing nearly 50 kilograms of fish. “Chinese workers have been releasing chemicals that kill the fish, and the authorities have warned us not to use the river’s water or eat fish taken from the river,” a resident of Viengko village near the town of Vang Vieng said.
Right now, there are no informations available, how the coronavirus outbreak impacts the construction of China-Laos-Railway with a lot of Chinese workers. Xinhuanet just shows "epidemic prevention measures". But it is known that some CREC-5 engineers cannot return to their position in Laos and part of the construction materials' transportation has been halted in China as thestar.com.my reports.
Update 16.2.20
The Rebirth of Casino Town Boten, Laos: A one hour documentary by Channel News Asia:
Update 5.5.2019
See #chinalaosrailway in the bigger picture, as part of China's Belt-and-Road-Strategy on #BeltandRoad Google Map
Thailand, China, and Laos have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) on the development of a rail line between Nong Khai and Vientiane in Laos. A new bridge across Mekong River will be the connection between #chinalaosrailway and Thailands highspeed railway. Read Bangkok Post. Find more informations about the development in Thailand on #BeltandRoad Google Map.
Update 26.3.2019
A video by Xinhua news agency shows the start of the beam-laying process for Nam Khone River Bridge 南柯内河特大桥 in the north of Vientiane. See the video.
Update 4.3.2019
The construction of Yuxi-Mohan railway and Boten-Vientiane railway lead to a new construction boom in the so called Beautiful Boten Specific Economic Zone. According to Laotian media Chinese investors want to pure more than $1.5 billion into the new development. China Haicheng Group 中国海诚集团积 is one company involved. They got funding from Hong Kong Fuk Hing Travel Entertainment Group Ltd according to Vientiane Times. Fuk Hing Travel Entertainment Group? Its leader Wong Man Suen was the partner of the Laos authorities for the closed Golden Boten City. "It comes as a surprise to learn the Lao officials have decided to give Wong yet another chance", writes forbes.com. Read more: After Golden Boten City fell in the Hand of Criminals: The second Chance
Update 25.2.2019
As important as the railway in Laos is the connection from the Lao border to Yuxi in Yunnan, from where an existing railway line leads to Kunming. China is building the 503.9 km long Yuxi-Mohan railway 玉磨铁路, also called Yumo Railway, with very high speed through rugged mountains. It counts 133 bridges and 91 main tunnels. Yumo railway will be electrified and have double-track from Yuxi to Jinghong and single-track from Jinghong to Mohan. Get an overview about the progress and find Yuyi-Mohan Railway 玉磨铁路 Google Map.
Update 10.1.2019
Chinese Railway Project in Laos Leaves Farmers in the Lurch: The railway has displaced more than 4,400 families from their land, many of these families have still not been compensated, reports rfa.org. Rattanamany Khounnivong, vice minister at the Lao Ministry of Public Works and Transport, told RFA late last year that those who lost houses and did not have places to live would get paid first, while those who lost farmland might get paid later. According to ABC Laos News’ Facebook page, Khounnivong said at a railway project committee meeting in November last year that of the $300 million that the government must pay out in compensation for losses related to the project, only $156 million has been paid. According to rfa.org the government must therefore borrow money from China to pay the rest this year.
Lao Villagers Reject Plans For China-Invested SEZ in Vang Vieng: The project, managed by the Chinese firm Lao-Vang Vieng New Area Development Company, will affect 22 villages lying to the west of the Xong river, reports rfa.org. Signed by the Lao-Vang Vieng Company last year in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Laos, the project will run in three phases over 15 years at a cost of U.S. $5.5 billion, and is expected to create 50,000 jobs, according to Lao media sources.
Update 14.12.2018
Picture of Luang Prabang Mekong Bridge 琅勃拉邦湄公河特大桥, planned 1458.9 Meters long
Picture by marhas
Picture by marhas
Picture by marhas
Picture by marhas
Picture by marhas
Update 12.12.2018
Belt and Railroad: China-Laos railway crosses the Mekong 10km north of Luang Prabang. pic.twitter.com/RSLSZbQ1zE
"Defaming Laos-China Railway is Ignoring Lao People’s Future": Chinese writer Zeng Ren argues on Chiang Rai Times, that the Laos-China railway "will become an important pillar of Laos’ economic growth". He gives the following data about expropriation of land: "About 3,000 hectares of land will be permanently taken over and 800 hectares of land will be temporarily used. Some 4,411 households will be affected due to the construction of the railway". He goes on: "Lao government is now seeking the opinion of relevant parties on the compensation standard. According to the requirements of railway projects, the compensation for land in different sections differs and is mainly based on whether the land is connected to national highways, provincial highways, village roads, or have no road access. Villagers affected by the railway will also be paid for their houses and apartments, as well as small buildings such as kitchens, sundries, garages, shops and animal houses. In addition, the developers of the railway will compensate people for crops and fruit trees that must be uprooted due to the railway construction. (...) The government’s compensation standard is 320,000 kip – 3.5 million kip per square metre (about US$37-US$410 per square metre). Plus other compensation for farmland, homesteads, young crops and so on, the amount of compensation will be considerable and equal to the annual income of local people."
Update 3.12.2018
How Asia Fell Out of Love With China’s Belt and Road Initiative: "Countries are discovering that the promise of Xi Jinping’s signature infrastructure program is too good to be true", writes bloomberg.com.
Update 1.11.2018
1,158-m-long Nateuy No 1 tunnel on the China-Laos Railway in Luang Namtha has been drilled through by China Railway No.5 Engineering Group (CREC 5). Huang Zongwen, a senior official with the China Railway No. 5 Engineering Group (CREC 5), told Xinhua the construction of the Nateuy No. 1 Tunnel, with 1158 meters, was started on June 3, 2017. "That the tunnel passes soft rocks all the way in the mountain, brought some difficulties in construction and especially, affected the digging pace," Huang said. See pictures.
Thailands Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak complained Monday that the development of the high-speed Thai-Chinese railway from Bangkok to Nong Khai is lagging behind schedule, as Bangkok Post reports. The route is divided into two major phases. The first is Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima, which is 253km in length and set to cost 179 billion baht. The second phase runs from Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai province.
Update 1.10.2018
The Chinese contractor told Xinhua the concrete casting for the first block of the Luang Prabang cross-Mekong River bridge' continuous beam along the China-Laos Railway was completed on September 17. Yan Haiyong, CPC party secretary of the China Railway No 8 Engineering Group (CREC-8)'s railway project department, who is in charge of the construction of the two bridges across the Mekong along the China-Laos Railway, said that the Luang Prabang railway bridge with a total length of 1458.9 meters, is a key project of the China-Laos Railway. According to Yan, the bridge's continuous beam design has high technical standards and is difficult to construct with pier-side bracket. The first block of the continuous beam has a length of 12 meters and consumes a concrete volume of 266 cubic meters. (Reported by steelguru.com.
How is China's New Silk Road transforming Vietnam and Laos? See documentary by Channel News Asia:
Update 8.9.2018
After days of heavy Monsoon rains, that caused floods in Luang Prabang province, a bridge across Mekong river has collapsed into the river. It served to construct the new railwy bridge across the Mekong near Luang Prabang.
The Chinese-built railway through Laos is worth half of that little nation’s GDP, writes washingtonpost.com. In a report by two researchers from Harvard’s Kennedy School, former Australian foreign minister Gareth Evans is quoted as saying Laos and Cambodia, each of which has borrowed more than $5 billion, are now “wholly owned subsidiaries of China.” Meanwhile Malaysias new Prime Minister Mahathir has cancelled two multi-billio dollar Chinese projetcs because Malaysia can’t repay its debts. “We do not want a situation where there is a new version of colonialism,” Malaysia’s leader told Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. One of the projects, dubbed the East Coast Rail Link, would have connected the South China Sea with strategic shipping routes in Malaysia’s west, providing an essential trade link. The other was a natural gas pipeline in Sabah, a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo.
Update 25.8.2018
In Phu Din Daeng, a village of 200 people about eight kilometers outside of Vang Vieng town, people have been told they should leave their homes to make way for the Laos-China railway. The people in Phu Din Daeng are living next to a giant construction site, near the planned Vang Vieng Railway Station.
Until now some 53 tunnels have been bored through mountains at a combined length of 37,314 meters, while 47 of the 167 bridges to be built for the line are under construction, reports chiangraitimes.com.
Laos’ cash commitment is US$720 million, of which US$250 million will come from the national budget over the next five years and the remaining US$470 million borrowed from the Export Import Bank of China at a 2.3% interest with a 35-year maturity after a five-year grace period, reports chiangraitimes.com.
With a project cost of nearly one-third of the country's copy6-billion GDP, there are concerns that the debt burden on Laos will outweigh the benefits. Public debt reached 68% of GDP in 2016 (it is less than 50% in Thailand), raising the debt distress level from "moderate" to "high" in the recent World Bank/IMF Debt Sustainability Analysis, as Bangkok Post reported.
The Ganlanba Bridge(橄榄坝特大桥) is 3.5 km long and has 108 supporting columns(桥墩). It has been constructed on the China side of the railway in Jinghong city, Yunnan province. The last(最后的) supporting column of the bridge has been installed(安装), reports chinaplus.cri.cn.
Read also: Chinese Tourist ‘Invasion’ Feared As High-Speed Laos-China Railway Will boost visitor numbers dramatically. In Luang Prabang Chinese low-cost retail chain Miniso opened a shop in June on Sisavangvong Road. In expectation of more regional visitors, many town-centre Luang Prabang residents have sold or rented out their properties to Chinese, South Korean or Vietnamese investors. The Mekong Sunset Guest House, for example, previously operated by a Lao national, is now run by a Chinese family from Guangxi province, reports South China Morning Post.
Update 18.6.2018
Recently, the pier No. 214 of Nanke River Bridge 楠科内河特大桥 in Laos was successfully poured. This is the longest bridge of the railway section built by the China Railway Second Bureau.
Chinas railway project in Laos is "set to be completed in 2021", reports Global Times, but the network reprots difficulties as well. Huang Hong, head of China-Laos railway commanding department under China Railway Group Ltd, says, that at mid-October "we've completed 14,925 meters in the channel excavation work", while the total length of the construction tender is 244.5 kilometers, including 45 tunnels and 99 bridges.
Xu Liping, an expert with the National Institute of International Strategy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, underlines that the project is one between two nations, and so far not an intercontinental project extended to Thailand. But the project only makes full sense, if trains from China can go through to Thailand and down to Singapore.
And the China-Laos rail project faces some difficulties. For example, funds are not always allocated on time, and Laos lacks some of the needed construction materials like cement, Huang Hong said.
Zhao Xiang, director general of the Laos-China Railway Company, said according to Xinhuanet that in less than six months, site preparation has been completed for the construction of four stations; foundation construction of nine bridge piles have finished; 86 holes for construction of 46 tunnels have been prepared, of which 15 are key tunnels.
More than 4,400 Lao families are being forced to relocate to make way for the Lao-Chinese high-speed railway, reports rfa.org, by citing Rattanamany Khounnivong, deputy minister at the Lao Ministry of Public Works and Transport and one of the heads of the construction unit. The ministry is working with the provincial task force committees to finalize compensation schemes for those who are forced to relocate, Rattanamany said. Workers have been blasting tunnels in mountains, building bridges and roads, and clearing land for stations and substations along the planned rail line in the three northern provinces of Luang Namtha, Oudomxay, and Luang Prabang since construction on the railway got under way late last December.
In Thailand construction work has been delayed for the initial 3.5-kilometre stretch of the Thai-Chinese high-speed railway in Nakhon Ratchasima, Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said. The project's environmental impact assessment (EIA) report is still pending approval according to Bangkok Post.
China's mammoth project to construct a railway from southwest China's Yunnan Province through Laos to its capital Vientiane is advancing now. Hundreds of trucks carrying machinery and equipment for construction have entered Laos, Vientiane Times reported. Preparations are now underway to start the boring of tunnels.
The 417-km railway will have 75 tunnels with a combined length of 197.83 km and work is expected to begin before the upcoming rainy season, Deputy Minister of Public Works and Transport and Chairman of the Laos-China Railway Project Management Committee, Mr Lattanamany Khounnivong, told Vientiane Times. Officials in charge have negotiated with villagers whose land is needed for the railway and have handed over their land to Chinese contractors. Six Chinese contractors will carry out construction of the USD 5.8 billion railway, with completion slated for 2021.
China Railway No 2 Group Co Ltd is responsible for the construction of Muang Phonhong section, as we learn by chinadaily. According to this source construction of the project is scheduled for five years with investment of some 40 billion Chinese yuan (USD 5.8 billion), 70 percent of which comes from Chinese investment and the rest 30 percent from Lao side.
China Railway Group (CRG) has signed a RMB 8.1 billion (US$ 1.2 billion) agreement to build the first three sections of the Boten-Vientiane Railway Project according to khl.com.
"The Nation" shows a picture of the Boten End of one tunnel, where boring has begun. Also in the province of Luang Prabang preparations are underway by China Railway No.8 Engineering Group, see pictures showing a tunnel near Luang Prabang.
Construction has begun, but questions remain. Discussions concerning loans and interest rates are ongoing between Laos and China, says Agatha Kratz, an associate policy fellow with the European Council on Foreign Relations, according to asiasentinel.com. Another skeptic is Ruth Banomyong, the director of the Center for Logistics Research at Thailand’s Thammasat University. Asiasentinal quotes her: “The challenge will come when Laos will have to repay,” she warned. “Will they have sufficient revenue generated to repay? This is doubtful as the financial feasibility study done by the Chinese does not have realistic assumptions.” According to a paper by Lao government Laos gets a Chinese loan of 480 Million US Dollars at 2.3 percebt rate per year to pay for 50 Million US Dollars, while Laos has to borrow the rest at the rate of 3 percent. See the paper in Lao: ເອກະສານໂຄສະນາເຜີຍແຜ່ນຳພາແນວຄິດກ່ຽວກັບໂຄງການກໍ່ສ້າງທາງລົດໄຟລາວ-ຈີນ.
China's mammoth project to construct a high-speed railway from southwest China’s Yunnan Province through Laos to its capital Vientiane is more and more in delay: The government of Laos tries to get a better loan interest rate from China, as Bangkok Post reports. Beijing has offered a US$500-million loan with a 3% interest rate for 20 years according to Vientiane Times. The estimated costs now: US$6.8 billion. The Lao and Chinese governments should be responsible for 40 percent of the total cost, while state enterprises of the two countries should jointly be responsible for sourcing the remaining 60 percent.
Delays are not new for this project. "Beijing is believed to be waiting for the Thai parliament to approve a planned £41 billion infrastructure upgrade, which will include a high-speed rail line from the Laos border to Bangkok, before signing off on the loan", reported telegraph.co.uk in January 2014.
The railway risks to create a financial desaster for Laos: Laos plans to borrow £4.5 billion from Beijing to pay for its section of the railway. This is almost 90 per cent of Laos’s annual GDP of £5.2 billion. The loan will make Laos the world’s fourth most-indebted nation after Japan, Zimbabwe and Greece - "trouble for a poor country", wrote The Economist. Read also: China's commercial 'takeover' of Laos by Nikkei Asian Review.
But right now the political crisis in Thailand hinders the Thai government to move on with the project for the highspeed-rail-link between Bangkok and Vientiane. On March 12 Thailands Constitution Court ruled, that the government's legislative bill to empower the Finance Ministry to seek two trillion baht in loans for infrastructure development projects is unconstitutional, as Bangkok Post reports. This means delay for high-speed train lines to Chiang Mai, Rayong, Nong Khai (border to Vientiane in Laos) and Padang Besar, on the Malaysian border.
See a presentation of the railway project from Boten to Vientiane on youtube.com. The planned railway will have a standard-gauge track, and a maximum speed of 160km/h, less than the 200km/h initially planned, as The Nation reported. See also this video showing the planned railwa line.
The line will require 76 tunnels and 154 bridges, including two across the Mekong River, and 31 stations. These stations have been named until now: Boten, Ban Na Thong, Ban Hua Nam, Muang Xai, Ban Na Khok Tay, Huoi Phou Lai, Luang Prabang, Muong Xieng Ngeun, Ban Sen, Kasi, Ban Bua Pheouk, Ban Pha Tang, Vang Vieng, Ban Vang Mon, Ban Mang Khi, Ban Hin Heup, Phonh Hong, Ban Sakha, Ban Phonh Sung, Vientiane Neua and Vientiane Tay.
Villages will have to be relocated, if the railway is constructed, as South China Moring Post writes.
The railway project ist expected to draw an estimated 20000 Chinese construction workers into Laos. In the northern province of Oudomxay Chinese residents already make up around 15 per cent of the population of 30,000. "Chinese-owned hotels, shops and restaurants line the roads and street signs are in both Laotian and Mandarin", reports todayonline.com. Chinese companies are already investing across Laos in everything from rubber and banana plantations to construction, hydroelectric and mining projects. The railway project increases fears. "I think if the Chinese are willing to provide the money, then they're doing it for a number of reasons," says Tristan Knowles, a director at Economists at Large, a Melbourne, Australia-based think tank. "You can flood the market in Laos with Chinese goods, especially agricultural products. The meat and livestock industries in Laos may not be able to compete unless they modernise in the time it takes to build the railway." Chinese companies own an increasing number of the rubber plantations that are the mainstay of northwest Laos’ economy, reports South China Morning Post. And even in Vientiane there are more and more shops run by Chinese people. Read more in the book Vientiane: Transformations of a Lao Landscape by Marc Askew,Colin Long adn William Logan.
A Chinese-invested cement factory was inaugurated in December 2015 in Khammouane Province, expected to serve the construction of China-Laos railway project. The Jixiang cement factory, with an investment of 120 million U.S. dollars, is a BOT (Build, Operate and Transfer) project signed between China's Yunnan Provincial Energy Investment Group and Lao Ministry of Planning and Investment in March 2012. A representative of China's Yunnan Provincial Energy Investment Group told Xinhua that the designed capacity of the factory is 1 million ton a year, accounting for 20 percent of Laos' total cement production capacity.
China has announced that it will invest US$31.4 billion in the Mengla economic zone in Yunnan province, which shares a border with Luang Namtha and Phongsaly provinces in northern Laos. In September 2015 the governments of Laos and China signed a cooperation agreement to establish an economic cooperation zone in the Boten-Mohan border area, aiming to boost trade, investment and tourism in the region as inquirer.net writes. Construction started on a railway linking Yuxi to Mohan in August and preparations for Mengla airport are underway. On the Lao territory, Boten is currently designated as a specific economic zone. The zone is being developed by two Chinese companies – Yunnan Hai Cheng Industrial Group Stock Co., Ltd and Hong Kong Fuk Hing Travel Entertainment Group Ltd with a concession period of 99 years. The Chinese developers have announced that they will focus on four mega projects in the zone including a duty free center, bus station complex, warehousing and a resort that shall feature a large natural marsh, hotel, meeting hall and other relaxing places.
Chinese influence is also very apparent in Muang Xay, the capital of Oudomxay Province. Hotel Sheng Chang was established in early 2014 with a big supermarket, a casino and a restaurant. Chinese shops and advertisements fully span both sides of the road in Muang Xay. "One can find small and middle-sized Chinese auto repair shops, grocery stores, hardware stores, computer shops, guest houses, and, of course, restaurants", notes eastasiaforum.org.
30.3.2020
The Lao government said all international checkpoints will be closed to stop passengers from exiting and entering Laos, as the country imposed a lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, reports Xinhua. The transport of goods will, however, be permitted. People from all walks of life, including expatriates in Laos, are not allowed to go out of their homes or other accommodation for non-essential purposes. The measures will be in place from Monday (March 30) to April 19 and further changes could be made, local daily Vientiane Times reported on Monday. Read the report by Vientiane Times. Five patients are being treated at Mittaphab Hospital in the capital, and three are being cared for at Luang Prabang provincial hospital (see Facevook Page). "Outbreak fears in Laos escalated after thousands of Lao workers in neighbouring countries, especially Thailand, where a widespread outbreak was reported, have rushed home", writes Vientiane Times. Entertainment venues, karaoke, beer shops, night markets, massage and spa service venues, witness or sporting centres were told to close down.
Another case of Covid-19 infection has been confirmed in Vientiane Capital, bringing the total number of cases in Laos to nine. A 22-year-old woman, one of the thousands of Lao laborers who have returned from Thailand, has been tested positive, reports Laotian Times
26.3.2020
The number of cases of coronavirus infection in Laos have doubled overnight, an official with the country’s Ministry of Health said Thursday, bringing the total to six, reports rfa.org. The two new cases are two male tour bus drivers, aged 42 and 52, from Luang Prabang city who had close contact with a female, aged 36, who works as a guide for European tourists and was confirmed as one of the country’s first two infections on Tuesday, along with a 28-year-old male working in management at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the capital Vientiane. The third new case—a 41-year-old male in Vientiane—had close contact with a 26-year-old male businessman who on Wednesday was confirmed as the third case and had become infected after having dinner with the Crowne Plaza Hotel employee.
25.3.2020 Kiridara Luang Prabang informs on Facebook: "The temporary suspension of all international flights into Luang Prabang and border closures due to the Covid-19 situation have caused hotels in Luang Prabang to temporarily cease operations."
23.3.2020 Chinese workers, some from a company in Wuhan, have restarted works for the construction of China-Laos railway, precautions are taken against coronavirus. Read more here.
3.2.2020 Chinese national carrying coronavirus travelled through Laos:The Laotian Times obtained a document from Chinese consulate in Luang Prabang. This document announced that Zhang Biao, a Chinese national from Chongqing (southwest China), had been discovered to have been infected with the coronavirus during his travel to Laos. In the evening of the 26th of January, Mr Zhang traveled to Vientiane Capital on China Express Airlines (flight G52805) as part of a group tour. He then proceeded to go to Vang Vieng on the 27th and reached Luang Prabang on the evening of the 28th. He then returned to Chongqing on the 31st via China Express Airlines (flight G54856).
A list of all planned station has been published by Wisarut. This blogger has matched it with a list published by Bounthone Sanasinh:
0. km Zero at Lao - China Border at Lao - China Friendship Tunnel (友谊隧道)
1. Boten (磨丁个车站, ສະຖານີບໍແຕນ); the Southern end of Friendship tunnels - km 3 + 020
2. Na Teuy (纳堆个车站, ສະຖານີນາເຕີຍ) km 15+400 2
3. Na Mor (纳磨个车站, ສະຖານີນາໝໍ້) km 30+940
4. Na Thong (那通个车站, ສະຖານີນາທອງ); km 40 + 675
5. Muong Xai Station (孟塞个车站, ສະຖານີເມືອງໄຊ) the provincial capital of Oudomsay province - km 69 + 550
6. Ban Na Khok Station (班纳科个车站, ສະຖານີບ້ານນາກອກ)
7. Muong Nga (孟阿火车站, ສະຖານີເມືອງງາ) km 115 + 720
8. Huoi Han Nga Station (会汉河 个车站, ສະຖານີຫ້ວຍຫັນງາ)
9. Luang Prabang (琅勃拉邦个车站, ສະຖານີຫລວງພະບາງ) - km 170 + 200
10. Xieng Ngeun Station (相嫩个车站, ສະຖານີຊຽງເງີນ) - southern suburb of Luang Prabang - km 179 + 150
11. Sala Patu Station (沙拉巴土个车站, ສະຖານີສາລາພາທູ) km 211 + 620
12. Muong Kasi (孟卡西 个车站, ສະຖານີເມືອງກາສີ) - km 240 + 090
13. Ban Phatang Station(班帕当 个车站, ສະຖານີບ້ານພາຕັ້ງ) - km 268 + 250
14. Vang Vieng (万荣 个车站, ສະຖານີວັງວຽງ) - tourist spot - km 285 + 100
15. Wang Khi station (万基个车站, ສະຖານີວັງຂີ) - km 312 + 175
16. Phonh Hong (丰洪个车站, ສະຖານີໂພນໂຮງ) - Provincial Capital of Vieng Chan - km 344 + 575
17. Ban Phonh Sung (班芬送个车站, ສະຖານີບ້ານໂພນສູງ) km 374+650
18. Vientiane Neua - (万象北个车站, ສະຖານີວຽງຈັນເໜືອ) Northern Vieng Chan capital - km 390 + 050
19. Vientiane (象北 个车站, ສະຖານີວຽງຈັນໃຕ້) - km 408 + 240 - Lao National University of Laos at Ban Don Noun, Viengchan Capital
22. Vientiane Tai (万象南 个车站, ສະຖານີວຽງຈັນໃຕ້) - clearly the station near National Stadium at Lak 16 at km 412 + 300 - not in the list of starting yet since this has been terminated at km 409+000
23. Thanaleng East (塔拉能东 ท่านาแล้งตะวันออก) - clearly the station near Tha Nalaeng station at km 425+000 - not in the list of starting yet since this has been terminated at km 409+000
Maps published in an early stage of planning:
Line from border between Laos and China at Boten (Map 1)
Detail of Line at Boten (Map2)
(Map 3)
Line west of Oudomsay airport (Map 4)
Line south of Oudomsay (Map 5)
Line near Luang Prabang (Map 6)
Line south of Luang Prabang< (Map 7)br>
The line crosses N13 north of Nam Ngum Lake, south of Vang Vieng (Map 8)
The line follows N13 west of Nam Ngum Lake (Map 9)
North of Vientiane the line follows N13 national road (Map 10)
The line crosses the Mekong and the border to Thailand at Nong Khai, Vientiane and its airport at the left (Map 11)
Planned is an electrified single track (standard track gauge) with a distance of 427,7 km. There will be 162 bridges with a total distance of 68.093 km, 72 tunnels with the distance of 183.978 km. Maximum speed for cargo will be 120 kph, maximum speed for passenger trains from Boten to Vang Vieng will be 160 kph, from Vang Vieng to Vientiane capital 200 kph. 33 stations are planned, but first only 21 stations will be built. These will allow trains passing each other. 11 stations will offer passenger services.
7 major tunnels are planned: Lao - China Friendship tunnel (友谊隧道 and 玉磨铁路友谊隧道): 9,68 km, 2,51 km on Lao side of border while 7,17 km on Chinese side. Start of construction in June 2016 by China Railway Second Bureau.
Kong Lang tunnel (空琅村隧道, 8150 meter)
Wa Nu Mountain (努瓦山隧道, 8185 meter)
Phu Kluea (福格村隧道, 8880 meter)
Ka (卡村隧道, 8005 meter)
Sen tunnel (森村隧道, 9405 meter)
La Meng tunnel (拉孟山隧道, 8055 meter)
According to the plan, there will be 11 stations for passenger use. 3 will be built in Oudomxay's Namor, Xay and Nga districts. 2 more stations will be built in Luang Prabang and Xieng-ngeun districts in Luang Prabang province. 3 will be constructed in Kasy, Vangvieng and Phonhong districts in Vientiane province and the main station will be in Vientiane. A goods transport depot will also be built in Vientiane.
The total project cost is estimated at 38.7 billion yuan (over USD 6 billion), which is about 90.6 million yuan (approx. USD 14 million) per kilometre. The Lao government has obtained a loan of about USD 480 million from China to pay its share of the investment cost. Somsavat Lengsavad, Laotian deputy prime minister, said the Chinese government has earlier offered Laos a loan with a three-percent interest rate, adding that Laotian government also asked the Chinese government to reduce the rate. He did not mention what the agreed-upon interest rate was. Laos will back the loan with five of its potash mines. Somsavat said after calculation, Laos has determined that it will be able to pay it back to China within five years instead of 30 years as Laos has five mines.
Construction contracts were awarded as follows:
1. Boten - Meuang Xay (Oudomxay, 88.65 km): China Railway No.5 Engineering Group (owned by China Railway Group Limited)
2. Meuang Xay (Oudomxay) - Nam Seu Bridge (68.8 km, including Mueang Xai station yard): China Railway International Group (owned by China Railway Group Limited)
3. Nam Seu Bridge - Phou Sanen Hill (65.6 km, including Bridge across Sue river): China Railway Baju Group Company (owned by China Railway Group Limited)
4. Phou Sanen Hill - Ban Pa Village (61.49 km): Sinohydro Group
5. Ban Pa Village - Phonhong (79.5 km): Power Construction Corporation of China
6. Phonhong - Vientiane (65.7 km, (including Phone Hong station yard): China Railway Erju Co., Ltd (owned by China Railway Group Limited)
