The Indonesia Railway Development Consortium (IRDC) is planning to build a railroad at a cost of 28 trillion Rp (1.98 billion USD) connecting Laos with Viet Nam.

At the signing ceremony of an agreement between the IRDC, Laos’ Petroleum Trading Lao Public Co. (Petrotrade), and Viet Nam’s HT Investment Construction Management Co. Ltd (Photo: theinsiderstories.com)

The project is part of an agreement signed between the IRDC, Laos’ Petroleum Trading Lao Public Co. (Petrotrade), and Viet Nam’s HT Investment Construction Management Co. Ltd. The deal was sealed during a bilateral meeting between Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith in 2017.

The railway, designed to span 400km from Thakhaek district in Khammuan province of Laos to Vung Ang seaport in Viet Nam’s central province of Ha Tinh, is expected to be completed in 2.5 years.

The project will also support Indonesia’s coal exports to Laos as well as Laos’ potassium exports to Indonesia.

Another company from Indonesia, the State-owned train manufacturer INKA, has invested 9 trillion Rp in the project.

(Source: VNA)