Cambodia Targets June Deal for Funan Techo Canal Construction with Chinese Firm

• 2 March 2024
• Local News
• 2303 Views

In a strategic move to advance the Funan Techo Canal project, the Cambodian government is intensifying efforts to finalize negotiations and sign a concessional agreement with a Chinese company for the commencement of construction.

Highlighting the project’s high priority, HE. Sun Chanthol, Deputy Prime Minister and First Vice Chairman of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), announced during the annual meeting of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport on February 29 that “We hope that we can discuss and negotiate this concession agreement in the upcoming months of June or July to reach the groundbreaking for the construction of the Funan Techo Canal project.”

The Funan Techo Canal, a pivotal waterway linking the Tonle Sap to the sea, spans 180 km from the Takeo Canal of the Mekong River through the Ta Ek Canal of the Bassac River to the Sea of Kep province. Passing through the provinces of Kandal, Takeo, Kampot, and Kep, the canal holds strategic significance as it fulfills Prime Minister Samdech Hun Manet’s vision to establish a connection between inland waterways and maritime routes.

Envisioned as a build-operation-transfer (BOT) project, the Funan Techo Canal is slated to be constructed by a Chinese firm, with an estimated cost of US$1.7 billion and an anticipated completion timeline of four years. (Read more)

• Road and Infrastructure