Thailand to scrap $38.3 billion land bridge project after study

[Yellow is Okay]

A drone image of Highway 44, a route linking Krabi and Surat Thani provinces as part of Thailand’s proposed land bridge project to connect the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. PHOTO: REUTERS​

BANGKOK – Thailand plans to scrap its proposed land bridge mega project that would link the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea, after a government study found it was no longer economically viable and poses significant environmental risks.

A government committee recommended terminating the project, earlier estimated at a cost of about 1 trillion baht (S$38.3 billion), Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said in a news briefing on July 24. The updated study found it would lose money overall, compared with an earlier assessment that projected substantial economic gains, he said.

The 100km connection, which could cut shipping times between the Indian and Pacific oceans by bypassing the Malacca Strait, returned to the spotlight in 2026 as tensions around the Strait of Hormuz underscored the vulnerability of global shipping routes.

In April, Deputy Prime Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said the government would accelerate the project.

The study also showed the project’s expected financial return had fallen to 4.8 per cent from 8 per cent, while cargo volumes were projected to be as much as 16 per cent lower than previously estimated.

Nine of the world’s 10 largest shipping lines have already invested in competing projects, leaving limited interest in the land bridge proposal, the official said.

The pitch for the land bridge project included seaports to be built on either side of the country’s southern peninsula and linked by highway and rail networks. The idea replaced a decades-old Thai proposal to dredge a canal through the Kra Isthmus.

Separately, the latest study warned the project could damage environmentally sensitive areas, including Ranong’s biosphere reserve and wetlands, and threaten key marine tourism sites.

Instead of pursuing the land bridge project, the government plans to upgrade Ranong Port and develop a rail link that would connect the Andaman coast with Thailand’s existing rail network to improve freight transport, Ekniti said.

The recommendation will be submitted to Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and the Cabinet for approval. Ekniti said the government has incurred no losses from the earlier plan because no land had been acquired and construction has not started.

“The project offers an important lesson that large infrastructure investments should begin with a clear assessment of the country’s strategic priorities and environmental considerations before agencies proceed with detailed project studies,” Ekniti said. Bloomberg

 

[c14-Isotope]

Made zero sense for Thailand to take multi billion dollar loans only to build a corridor for China.
Well, one more idea to bypass Malacca has kicked the bucket.

 

[Thinking]

Smart move. Don't become a "road" for other countries unless you are the one doing most of the driving.

 

[Pakistanithinktank]

If it was Pakistan, politician would have built in 2 to 3 years, drag the project to increase the cost.
Pakistan corrupt politicians, as someone (Orya Maqbool Jan) recently put it in the interview, if they needed 16 billion, they ask for 18 billion, two billion for party and money laundering.

 

[retaxis]

Made zero sense for Thailand to take multi billion dollar loans only to build a corridor for China.
Well, one more idea to bypass Malacca has kicked the bucket.

China has arctic sea route and route through russia/central asia and route through myanmar. The minute war starts, China will have the malacca straits completely blocked over the top of any other blockades.

but none of that actually matters since China can impose blockade of straits of malacca and the people who suffer the most are trading nations like Japan, SK, Indonesia, Taiwan etc..

The malacca strait blockade is something that harms US allies far more than it can ever harm china. India lack of understanding of this simple factor is astonunding and the real threat of China cutting the chicken neck off and taking north east india and blockading India water supply remain a real threat as it does not threaten the rest of the world.

 

[Mista]

I've written before on the Kra Canal:

Because it's not a feasible idea. Just look at the map. The Suez and Panama Canal cuts through an entire continent, while Kra Canal cuts through only the Malay Peninsula.

And because the Kra region is mountainous, it would cost much more to construct and operate than the Suez. More water locks are needed, which significantly increases operating costs and sailing time.

It's not like an empty wide strait where ships can sail through without decelerating and stopping. You have to queue for it. It's like driving, you know the traffic jams happens when lanes merge and cars have to funnel. So in reality, there isn't much time and cost saved, if any.

Look at this. When oil prices are low, many ships would rather sail around Africa rather than through Suez Canal.

Cargo ships could save thousands by skipping the Suez Canal

The low price of oil is allowing cargo vessels to avoid the costly tariffs of the Suez and Panama canals and take the long way round Africa instead.

www.cnbc.com

Bear in mind that the Suez has already breakeven, so they can charge lower prices. So why would ships pay much more (due to terrain) just to queue and use the Kra Canal when it doesn't save much cost or time, if any?

Then many Chinese netizens talk about the strategic need to overcome it's chokepoint at the Malacca Strait which the US can hold hostage. It also sounds silly.

1) Thailand is a treaty ally of the US.

2) Do you think the Kra Canal or the Malacca Strait is a more vulnerable chokepoint?

Remember this?

Some bad actor just have to sabotage a ship on the narrowest point and the entire canal is paralyzed.

The idea of a land bridge to bypass the Malacca Strait is even more silly.

You have to queue to berth and unload your cargo, transfer it to a terminal, load it onto trains (whose capacity hardly matches maritime shipping), unload it at another terminal, move it to another port, and finally load it onto another ship which also has to be available.

A large container ship carries around 20,000–24,000 TEU, while a freight train carries only around 200–400 TEU. You're talking about dozens of train movements just to handle the cargo from a single ship. That means the railway would need extremely high train frequencies, multiple parallel tracks, and massive terminals, all of which add significant cost. Meanwhile, the Malacca Strait already provides a wide, unconstrained sea route without requiring expensive land infrastructure.

Then there's the coordination problem. Just because a ship unloads on one coast doesn't mean another ship is immediately available on the other. Suppose five ships arrive from China, but only three ships are waiting on the opposite coast. Containers end up sitting in storage waiting for the next vessel, or ships have to wait until enough cargo arrives to justify departure to the same destination. That means more warehousing, more scheduling complexity, more idle time, and ultimately more inefficiency.

Every additional step adds friction in the form of port fees, crane operations, insurance, and a greater risk of delays or cargo damage. In the end, it's hard to see how the land bridge saves much time or money, if any. You're just bypassing the Malay Peninsula, not an entire continent.

 

[peagle]

If it was Pakistan, politician would have built in 2 to 3 years, drag the project to increase the cost.
Pakistan corrupt politicians, as someone (Orya Maqbool Jan) recently put it in the interview, if they needed 16 billion, they ask for 18 billion, two billion for party and money laundering.

The world is corrupt, stop dragging Pakistan into every idiotic discussion where it has no relevance.
It's time to grow the heck up.

 

[Pakistanithinktank]

The world is corrupt, stop dragging Pakistan into every idiotic discussion where it has no relevance.
It's time to grow the heck up.

I agree that there is corruption in the world but disagree with the statement “World is corrupt”.

 

[Owaiz]

Made zero sense for Thailand to take multi billion dollar loans only to build a corridor for China.
Well, one more idea to bypass Malacca has kicked the bucket.

That corridor was meant for Thailand's benefit and found to be unviable. It is natural that it would have relied on Chinese traffic to a large extent just because China is such a major trading nation. That doesn't mean that it was motivated by any Chinese interest.

 

[Yellow is Okay]

If it was Pakistan, politician would have built in 2 to 3 years, drag the project to increase the cost.
Pakistan corrupt politicians, as someone (Orya Maqbool Jan) recently put it in the interview, if they needed 16 billion, they ask for 18 billion, two billion for party and money laundering.

Actually, before this land bridge, it was the Kra Canal that Thailand wanted to build, but it proved economically and financially unviable. China likely pulled the plug, which led Thailand to give up on it too. The Funan Techo Canal will probably come next.