On April 24, according to Thai media news, Mr. Suriya, Minister of Transport of Thailand, revealed that he would lead a team to visit China from May 7 to 9 this year. On 8 May, there will also be an opportunity to meet with Chinese investors to further promote and invite investment in the Gulf of Thailand-Andaman Economic Bridge project (Land Bridge).
As for the trip to China, it is considered the final stage of the roadshow for the land bridge project in Thailand, after which the Ministry of Transport will start preparing the investment documents according to the target. After the roadshow, a draft will be submitted to the Southern Economic Corridor (SEC) office in the fourth quarter of 2024, an investment invitation announcement will be issued in the fourth quarter of 2025, public bidding will be held in the second quarter of 2026, land acquisition will begin in the fourth quarter, construction is planned to start in 2026, and it will be officially put into use in 2030.
Suriya further said that the visit will also attend the 31st China-Thailand Railway Cooperation Ministerial Meeting on May 8 to discuss the progress of the first phase of the high-speed rail project: Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima section (under construction). At the same time, discussions will also be held on the readiness to move forward with the second phase of the Nakhon Ratchasima-Nong Khai section of the project, which has now been designed and approved by the State Railways of Thailand (SRT).
According to Thailand's Ministry of Transport, the ministerial meeting was the first time in five years that the China-Thailand railway had restarted negotiations because of the coronavirus pandemic during Thailand's previous government. It is also understood that the first phase of the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima section of the China-Thailand railway has made progress of 32.31% as of March 25 this year, and the goal is to open to traffic in 2028, while the second phase of the Nakhon Ratchasima-Nong Khai section is initially expected to be put into use in 2031.