Fact Sheet 2007-AEC-010 The Singapore-Kunming Rail Link. more...
Association of Southeast Asian Nations
26 September 2007
Issued by the Public Affairs Office of the ASEAN Secretariat, 70 A Jalan Sisingamangaraja, Jakarta 12110, Indonesia
Tel: (62 21) 726 2991, 724 3372 y Fax: (62 21) 739 8234, 720 0848 y www.aseansec.org
Ten Nations One Community
THE SINGAPORE-KUNMING
RAIL LINK PROJECT
FA
C
T
S
HEET
0
The Singapore-Kunming Rail Link (SKRL)
project was proposed at the Fifth ASEAN
Summit in December 1995. The SKRL is a
flagship project of the ASEAN-Mekong Basin
Development Cooperation (AMBDC).
Towards Seamless Regional Rail Transport
An SKRL feasibility study examining six
alternative routes to link Singapore to Kunming,
China, was completed in August 1999. All six
routes have a common sector from Singapore
to Bangkok via Kuala Lumpur.
Proposed SKRL Route Alternatives
Study
Route
Cost
(US$ bn)
Length
(km)
Missing
Links
Countries
Involved
1 1.8 5,382 431
Cambodia,
Lao PDR,
Viet Nam
2 6.0 4,559 1,127
Myanmar,
Thailand,
China
3 1.1 4,259 531
Lao PDR,
China
4 5.7 4,164 1,300
Lao PDR,
China
5 1.1 4,481 616
Lao PDR, Viet
Nam, Thailand
6 1.1 4,225 589 Lao PDR, Viet
Nam, Thailand
Route 1 which connects Cambodia, Lao PDR,
Viet Nam and China, was selected by the
ASEAN Transport Ministers for its high social
and economic impact. It will cost an estimated
US$1.8 billion to construct. Its 5,382 km length
includes the missing links from Poipet to
Sisophon, and from Phnom Penh to Loc Ninh
and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as the spur lines
from Ho Chi Minh City to Vung Tau and from
Vientiane to Vung Anh. Routes 2 to 6 will be
considered for implementation in national rail
plans or other railway network projects, such
as the Trans-Asian Railway.
Latest Developments
The SKRL project has seen steady progress:
• Cambodia’s construction of the missing
links, guided by the Inter-Ministerial
Committee for SKRL, is on schedule.
• Viet Nam completed a feasibility study on
the Ho Chi Minh City–Loc Ninh missing link
and is negotiating with Cambodia for the
location of rail connection points. A
feasibility study for a spur link from Vung
Ang to Tan Ap-Mu Gia for further linking
with Vientiane is also being undertaken.
• In December 2006, the ADB approved a
US$60 million loan to Viet Nam to assist in
the rehabilitation of the Hanoi–Lao Cai
section and a US$42 million loan to
Cambodia to assist in the rehabilitation of
Cambodia railways that include sections of
the SKRL route. The ADB is also
undertaking a detailed design study on the
Phnom Penh–Loc Ninh sector with
financing from China.
• China has made progress on the Chinese
sectors of the SKRL, including the Yuxi-
Hekou route (Eastern portion), the Yuxi-
Mohan (Middle portion) and the Dali-Ruili
(Western portion). Construction of the Yuxi-
Mengzi railway is scheduled to be
completed in 2009. The feasibility study of
the Dali-Ruili railway has been completed.
• The Republic of Korea has completed a
US$1.2 million feasibility study on the
SKRL portion linking Bangkok to Yangon.’
For more information on the Singapore-Kunming
Rail Link project, contact Mr. Gary Krishnan
(garykrishnan@aseansec.org) of the Bureau for
External Relations & Coordination of the ASEAN
Secretariat.
Please visit www.aseansec.org for more information
on the ASEAN-Mekong Basin Development
Cooperation and its projects.
