Vietnam wants to extend standard gauge China connection all the way down south
Vietnam is planning to extend the standard gauge rail connection to China all the way down to Ho Chi Minh City in the country’s south. The high-speed rail line will feature five freight stations alongside 23 passenger stations.
The line will have a total length of 1,541 kilometres, starting at Ngoc Hoi station in Hanoi and ending at Thu Thiem station in the country’s largest city, Ho Chi Minh. In total, the project will cost the country 67,34 billion US dollars (61,4 billion euros), according to Vietnamese media.
Earlier, Vietnam announced that it would be developing three high-speed rail lines to China. Two already existing rail lines in Vietnam will be converted to China’s standard gauge, whereas one such line will be built entirely from scratch.
Vietnam – China trade booming
The high-speed rail infrastructure plan comes at a moment when trade between China and Vietnam is booming. Bilateral trade grew by more than 20 per cent between January and July 2024 and amounted to 145 billion US dollars. It seems that China and Vietnam believe that adequate rail infrastructure can help boost those numbers even further.
