The External Power Supply Project of the Laos Section of the China-Laos Railway is Completed on Schedule

The construction site of the External Power Supply Project of the Laos section of the China-Laos Railway.

On September 22, 2020, the first tower erection of the project was completed, marking an exciting new stage of its construction.

Workers of the project are casting the foundation of the first tower.

Vientiane, Laos - Wednesday, March 31 was an important date in which workers and senior managers joined together to bear witness to the completion of the 20-circuit transmission lines of the External Power Supply Project in the Laos section of the China-Laos Railway and the “debugging” of 11 transmission line bays of the power transformation project.

Accepted by the Ministry of Energy and Minerals of Laos, électricité du Laos? and the company in charge, the project was completed on schedule and qualified for operation, laying a solid foundation for the China-Laos Railway to open to traffic as planned.

électricité du Laos?is the?state corporation?of?Laos?that owns and operates the country's?electricity generation,?electricity transmission?and?electricity distribution?assets. EDL also manages the?import?and?export?of?electricity?from the?national electricity grid?of the country. EDL was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in?Vientiane.

The China-Laos Railway is a key project to promote the interconnectivity of infrastructure between the two countries. As its auxiliary power supply project, the China-Laos Railway Power Supply Project is the first Build-Operate-Transfer project for the power grid in Laos, supporting the testing and operation of the China-Laos Railway with electrical power.

In April 2019, a shareholder agreement of the project was signed, witnessed by the leaders of China and Laos … as the newly formed Laos-China Power Investment Company, jointly established by Yunnan International Co. Ltd. and EDL, was responsible for the investment, construction, operation, and maintenance of the project.

Year 2021 marks the "China-Laos Friendship Year" and the 60th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The completion of the “on schedule” project contributes to building a China-Laos community with a shared future.

After the project is fully completed, China Southern Power Grid senior managers will implement the community plan by cooperating with Laos-China Railway Co. Ltd. and EDL to connect railway traction substations, ensuring a consistent and reliable power supply for the subsequent testing and operation of railways.

The Laos section of the China-Laos Railway begins at the Mohan-Boten Port on the border between China and Laos in the north to Vientiane, the capital of Laos in the south, with a total length of 414 kilometers and a design speed of 160 kilometers per hour.

Construction started in December 2016 and was expected to open to traffic by the end of 2021. The power supply project of China-Laos Railway officially started construction on December 30, 2019, spanning four provinces and one city in Laos from north to south, including Luang Namtha province, Oudomxay province, Luang Prabang province, Vientiane province and Vientiane city.

This project is divided into four transmission-line sections and one power transformation section, building 20 circuits of 115 kV lines with a total length of 257 kilometers, 633 towers and 11 transmission line bays of 115 kV. In addition, 10 traction substations of electrified railways were connected to the power grid of Laos.

As the first standard-gauge railway in Laos, China-Laos Railway is the first railway project outside China which is invested, built, and operated mainly by China and directly connected with China's railway network after the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed.

The entire railway is being built under China's technical standards using Chinese construction equipment. Concurrently, China's technical standards and equipment have also been adopted in the China-Laos Railway power supply project.

To build a quality and demonstration Build-Operate-Transfer grid project in Laos, China Southern Power Grid attacks problems relating to safety, quality, and schedule management by strictly adhering to the construction standards and project safety & quality rules.

During peak construction, 654 workers from China and Laos pressed ahead while ensuring the prevention and management of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the construction, no accidents occurred and "zero confirmed cases and zero infected cases" were found.