Ground broken on Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville expressway full of special features

23 March 2019
Local News
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After waiting more than 13 years, the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville expressway finally saw ground officially broken by Samdech Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia on 22 March 2019. Since this project represented the largest investment project in recent Cambodian history, it has been welcomed by many who are eager to know more details.

This major infrastructure project is being undertaken thanks to the investment by China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and is scheduled to finish construction by March 2023.

“The project is one thing we hope that will push our economic poles connecting Phnom Penh and Cambodia’s coast to become a gateway of economic growth, that is what we want it to be,” Samdech Techo Hun Sen said.

What makes this multi-billion-dollar project so important to Cambodia?

Investment capital for Phnom Penh – Sihanoukville

This huge project has been studied by CRBC since 2006. By 2018, the company signed an agreement with Cambodia to construct the road with a capital investment of about US$2 billion through a ‘build-operate-transfer’ scheme. The company will use US$600 million of its own funds while the remaining US$1.4 billion will come in the form of loans to CRBC from China Bank. In addition, the project will use US$150 million in grant aid from the People’s Republic of China.

Build – Operate – Transfer (BOT) scheme

According to H.E Sun Chanthol, Senior Minister, Minister of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT), BOT scheme for this project is different from BOT schemes implemented in other countries around the world.

“Normally, with BOT systems in other countries the state gives land to investors, but in Cambodia, the government has no land, so the company has to give money to the Cambodian government to buy the land, and Cambodia gives the company the right to use it for a certain period of time as stated in the agreement,” he said.

The BOT agreement for this project is set for a 50-year period.

Government contribution to the project

According to H.E Sun Chanthol, the Royal Government of Cambodia is contributing to this project through a tax deduction of goods imported into Cambodia for the construction of this road but is not providing any loans or grants.

Job creation for citizens

According to Mr Weng Gang, Vice President of CRBC, the project will provide 6,000 direct jobs to local people during the construction period. In addition, the company expects to create about 10,000 jobs after the completion of construction, and when operations begin, the project will create jobs for over 2,000 people annually. The company also plans to train staff at all levels and on all skills within the construction and infrastructure sectors.

Location of Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway project

With a total construction length of about 190 km, the Phnom Penh – Sihanoukville expressway will connect from Village 1, Samrong Krom, Khan Por Sen Chey, Phnom Penh to Village 1, Sangkat 3, Sihanoukville. The route will pass through about 8.3km of Phnom Penh, 9.1km of Kandal province, 80.8km of Kampong Speu province, 1.92km of Koh Kong province, and 89.89km of Sihanoukville.

Time and cost of travelling

After completion, people can travel from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville in 90 minutes. CRBC will allow all kinds of vehicles to drive on this route free of charge for one month when it opens on March 2023. Then, the company will give a 20% discount on all vehicles for up to one year. However, for the full fee for this expressway, H.E Sun Chanthol said that the company has the right to set the price itself, but he believed that prices would be lower than expressways across other ASEAN countries. The region’s general price for expressways is calculated by kilometres on different vehicles ranging from between US$0.10 and US$0.13 per kilometre.

Road type

The Phnom Penh – Sihanoukville expressway will be 10cm-thick asphalt concrete road stretching over 4 lanes with each lane is 3.75 metres wide allowing all kinds of vehicles to drive at speeds of between 100km to 120km per hour. Other road facilities include a garden between the directional lanes, 263 pipes, 5 small bridges (total length is 105 metres), 80 large and medium-sized bridges (total length is 6015 metres), 6 traffic intersections (vehicles can cross to National Road No.4), 28 intersections, 237 underground places, and 20 flyovers. It also includes the construction of 3 commercial areas (rest areas), 1 parking lot, 4 road maintenance departments and 8 toll gates and other road equipment like traffic signs, traffic lights, and traffic direction sign.

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