Committee expected to submit recommendations to PM in August
Ranong Port would require expansion to accommodate the Land Bridge project, raising concerns about environmental impacts in the area. (Photo: Port Authority of Thailand)
A government committee studying the Land Bridge megaproject has identified its commercial viability as a critical issue, according to Danucha Pichayanan, secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC).“We need to determine whether the project is feasible from a commercial perspective. If it is, we can then consider the appropriate scale of development,” he said on Friday after a meeting chaired by Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas.
Mr Danucha serves as the secretary to the panel tasked with examining approaches to driving the development of transport infrastructure linking the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea.
Expected to require an investment of close to one trillion baht, the project envisages upgraded ports in Ranong on the Andaman side and Chumphon province on the Gulf, linked by a road and rail transport network. Supporters believe it will attract shippers seeking alternatives to sailing around Singapore via the congested Strait of Malacca.
