On March 24, 2026, Deputy Prime Minister Saleumxay Kommasith of Laos announced at the opening ceremony of the 10th National Assembly that the Laos Vietnam cross-border standard gauge railway has been included in the national key infrastructure projects for 2026-2030. The Laotian government has submitted relevant proposals to the parliament to promote the approval of domestic road sections. The plan is to start construction on the Laotian section in 2026 and put the entire line into operation by 2030. This line will be connected with the China Laos railway, and together form a new sea passage for Laos.

Open up the sea route

The planned total length of the railway is about 562 kilometers, starting from Vientiane, the capital of Laos, and ending at Yong'an Port in Ha Tinh Province, Vietnam. It can provide a direct railway logistics channel to the seaport for the inland country of Laos. The line adopts the same standard gauge as the China Laos Railway. The maximum passenger speed is 150 km/h, and the maximum freight speed is 80 km/h. The total investment of the project is about 6.6 billion dollars.

The project will be implemented in PPP mode, jointly led by Laos PTL Petroleum Trading Company and Vietnam Deo Ca Group, and will be promoted in three stages. The section from Taqu to Mujiaguan border is 147 kilometers long, and the survey and design are nearing completion. Construction will begin first; The section from Mujiaguan to Yong'an Port is 103 kilometers long and is awaiting final approval in Vietnam; The section from Wanxiang to Taqu is 312.8 kilometers long and is still undergoing further feasibility studies.

Reduce logistics costs

Previously, Laos announced in December 2025 that the domestic section was planned to start construction in 2026 and be completed and opened to traffic in 2030, with most of the preliminary work already completed at that time. The construction of the section within Vietnam is expected to commence in 2027. The investment for the road section submitted by Laos for parliamentary review this time is about 1.3 billion US dollars, and it will adopt a long-term franchise model. The parliament plans to complete the preliminary approval before the closing of the meeting on March 27th. Keywords: Lao Yue Railway, Standard Gauge Railway, Overseas Passage

The Laotian side stated that the railway will significantly reduce logistics costs, alleviate dependence on road transportation, deepen economic and trade cooperation between Laos and Vietnam, and improve regional supply chains.Editor/Gong Ziwei