Asean Express Freight Train arrives in Laos with KTMB’s Rolling Stock, boosting regional trade

VIENTIANE: A freight train launched as part of the Asean Express, an international rail freight system connecting Malaysia to Thailand, Laos and China, arrived at the Thanaleng Dry Port in Vientiane on Friday (July 5), marking a significant step in boosting trade among these countries.

The cargo wagons departed Malaysia’s Selangor state on June 27 and ran through Thailand before entering the Lao dry port where the one metre-gauge Laos-Thailand railway converges with the standard-gauge (1.435 metre) Laos-China railway.

Welcoming the train at the dry port, Laos’ integrated logistics centre, Malaysian Ambassador to Laos Mr Edi Irwan bin Mahmud said this new level of connectivity has brought the countries closer and strengthened their ties.

“This (cargo train) is not the last, but it will be continuous,” he said.

Vice President of Vientiane Logistics Park Co., Ltd., the developer of the dry port, Tee Chee Seng, who is also President of Malaysian Business Chamber Laos said cost-effective rail freight transport would increase competitiveness, attract more investment, and make the price of goods more affordable.

Jean Pierre Grzelczyk, CEO of Savan Logistics (DP World) – a subsidiary of DP World, which is a strategic partner of the Asean Express – welcomed the direct rail link..

Amid improved connectivity, he said Laos is an interesting place to invest to expand DP World’s business in Southeast Asia in addition to their businesses that are already active in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Thanaleng Dry Port’s Managing Director Sakhone Philangam described the direct rail link as a breakthrough.

“It is the first time we have been able to directly link the dry port to Malaysia,” he said, adding that the dry port aims to function as a regional and international logistics connector.

The successful direct rail freight link is the result of a Memorandum of Cooperation signed by the two sides during an official visit to Laos by Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in June last year.

The service connects new trade routes and multiple inland ports across the region and is expected to significantly reduce the transit time of goods. For example, it will take just nine days from the Kontena Nasional Inland Clearance Depot (KNICD) in Selangor state to southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality against the 14 to 21 days normally required by sea, Malaysian Transport Minister Loke Siew Fook said in a speech at the flag-off ceremony on June 27, according to Xinhua.

The minister said the new service would improve regional logistics and rail connectivity, open up new markets and provide more cost savings to local businesses and people.

“This service will provide smoother and more efficient goods flow throughout the region as well as enhance rail cargo transport capacity while reducing logistics costs by an estimated 20 per cent from current market rates,” the minister was quoted as saying.

“The shorter transport times are also expected to open up new markets, with the agriculture sector in particular to benefit by allowing perishable products to be transported more quickly by rail.”

The Asean Express has the potential to handle up to 20,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent unit containers) annually from China to the Asean market, which opens up significant opportunities for trade and economic growth while reinforcing the strategic importance of the rail network in the regional supply chain, Xinhua reported, citing Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad Group chief executive officer Mohd Rani Hisham Samsudin. – Vientiane Times/ANN