Preparations are underway for a roadshow to foreign investments in the southern land bridge megaproject, according to a source at the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning.
The roadshow, set to kick off next month, will take place in 10 countries with prominent players in the logistics and maritime shipping industries, such as China, Japan, France and Taiwan.
According to the source, information gathered from the event will be analysed and used to fine-tune the megaproject before a plan is submitted to the cabinet for approval. Fresh rounds of public hearings will be held in Ranong and Chumphon provinces next month, ahead of an environmental health impact assessment.
The roadshow follows Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's call for the acceleration of the megaproject, which aims to develop a logistics network connecting Ranong along the Andaman Sea to Chumphon along the Gulf of Thailand and is seen by the government as another means to kickstart the economy with investment and by improving transport links.
Worth an estimated 1 trillion baht, the land bridge project comprises deep-water ports in Ranong and Chumphon, a motorway cutting across the land to connect the two provinces and a railway system.
Based on a timeline for the project's development, the scheme is divided into four phases. The first phase will cost roughly 610 billion baht, the second 165 billion baht, the third 229 billion baht and the fourth will cost 85.1 billion baht.
The project will involve the development of ports in Ranong and Chumphon and a connection between both ports, with a budget of about 6.21 billion baht for land expropriation. Bidding is tentatively scheduled to take place by mid-2025, with the contract signing expected in the third quarter of the same year, the source said, adding the bidding process will cover all infrastructure schemes in the megaproject.
Earlier, Federation of Thai Industries chairman Kriengkrai Thiennukul said investors from China have expressed interest in taking part in the southern land bridge project, especially in deep-sea port development.
The prime minister invited investors from China and other countries to take part in the project during his recent visit to China to attend the 3rd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.
Kriengkrai: China eyes port project