In early May 2026, a railway linkage crossing the Strait of Malacca quietly accelerated between Thailand and Malaysia. The representative office of Luhai New Channel Operation Co., Ltd. in Malaysia has collaborated with a Thai company for the first time, with a clear goal of enabling the Thai Malaysian railway to take the lead and pave the way for the normal operation of the entire China Laos Thai Malaysian railway line. From Bangkok to the Eastern Economic Corridor, from the cold storage to the station, two overseas forces spent two days finalizing key details from the division of responsibilities to the organization of goods sources.

Taima Railway Interconnection Speed Up

On May 9-10, 2026, Zhao Ke, Chief Representative of the Malaysia Representative Office of the Land Sea New Channel Operation Co., Ltd., accompanied by relevant personnel from the international logistics market and cross-border railway sectors of Malaysia Port Group and Malaysia National Container Co., Ltd., went to Bangkok and the Eastern Economic Corridor in Thailand to hold a special work exchange on the interconnection of the Malaysia Thailand railway with the Land Sea New Channel Operation Thailand Co., Ltd. Both parties agree that the Land Sea New Channel Operation Co., Ltd. will coordinate and coordinate the localization issues, while the Malaysian representative office and the Thai company will address them separately, including local policy coordination, railway network connection, source organization, customs clearance coordination, etc. This division of labor has cleared the obstacles of rights and responsibilities for the subsequent normalization of operations.

Chongqing fruits take the route to go abroad

On the morning of May 9, 2026, the delegation inspected the fruit cold storage of a Thai company. The cold storage has a capacity of 5000 tons, or 15000 cubic meters, with an annual turnover of over 50000 tons. It mainly stores high-quality domestic agricultural products such as Chongqing Wogan, Yunnan apples, and Xinjiang grapes. Both parties communicated on site regarding operational details such as cold chain temperature control standards, cross-border customs clearance efficiency, and cold chain transportation. The Malaysian representative expressed at the meeting that they hope to extend the mature fruit cold chain service in Thailand to the Malaysian market, so that Chinese fruits can take the China Laos Thailand Malaysia railway directly to Malaysia. This means that the channel has received great support from the Malaysian side, and it also means that both sides will promote the replication and implementation of the channel's mature cold chain operation experience in Malaysia.

Three stations support the normalization of train schedules

On May 10, 2026, the delegation conducted on-site research on three core stations that Thai companies have been operating on a regular basis: Madapu Station, Linchaban Station, and Chumphon Station. Data shows that the three stations operate 3 to 4 trains per week, with a monthly volume exceeding 800 TEUs, and the container loading and unloading capacity of the yards along the line reaches an average of over 1000 TEUs per day. Both parties confirm that they will rely on the existing train infrastructure and combine with the local railway networks of Malaysia and Thailand to exchange and complement each other's strengths. Thailand needs Malaysia's railway network to extend the southbound route, and Malaysia also needs Thailand's mature stations and operational experience to connect the northbound link. Both parties have clarified the key tasks for the next stage: opening the Taima freight channel, comprehensively promoting railway transportation of products and goods between Taima and Malaysia, and taking the lead in achieving daily train operation of Taima Railway; Connect to the normalized supply of goods from China, Laos, and Thailand, integrate Malaysia into the normalized operation network, and promote the full connectivity of China, Laos, Thailand, and Malaysia.Editor/Gao Xue