Disagreements over costs and land procurement are adding years to schedules
YUKAKO ONO, Nikkei staff writer

Officials attend the groundbreaking ceremony of the rail project linking Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima, on Dec. 21 in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. (Photo by Yukako Ono).
NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand Exports of high-speed railway systems by China to Southeast Asian nations are lagging behind schedule due to problems over cost sharing and delays in land procurement.
A China-led project in Thailand is finally about to get underway, two years after a groundbreaking ceremony for a part of the route. But the outlook for connecting the line with China’s planned pan-Asian railway network is still dim.
The situation is a matter of concern to China as high-speed railway exports represent a core of the Belt and Road Initiative to reinforce its relations with neighboring countries through infrastructure projects.

The Thai government on Dec. 21 held a groundbreaking ceremony for a 250km, 179 billion baht ($5.46 billion) high-speed rail project linking Bangkok and the northeastern Thai province of Nakhon Ratchasima. Tiếp tục đọc “China’s high-speed train plans in Southeast Asia stumble”


