Construction of High Speed Kunming-Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong Railway to Begin

Viet Nam is set to begin construction of a new 417-kilometer railway line connecting the northern port city of Haiphong to Kunming, People’s Republic of China (PRC), via Hanoi and Lao Cai Province. The initiative, with an estimated investment of about US$11 billion, aims to bolster trade and tourism between the two countries by enhancing connectivity and facilitating smoother transportation of goods and people.

Viet Nam’s Ministry of Transport is reportedly preparing the pre-feasibility report for the project for consideration under the PRC’s Belt and Road Initiative.

The high-speed Kunming-Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong railway is slated for formal approval by Viet Nam's National Assembly in February 2025.

In November 2024, on the sidelines of the 8th GMS Summit, Viet Nam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with the China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), and invited them to join the railway project linking the two nations. He also urged CRCC to join other key traffic projects in Viet Nam, including the Hanoi-Lang Son railway, Mong Cai-Ha Long-Hai Phong railway, North-South high-speed railway, and border expressways linking Viet Nam-PRC.