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25-549: Nam Ha National Protected Area is located about 5 km (3 mi) southwest of Luang Namtha and covers parts of all five of the province's districts . The park's area is 2,224 km (860 sq mi). The park encompasses the Nam Ha Important Bird Area with an area of 1,845 km (710 sq mi). Elevations range from about 500 m (1,640 ft) to the park's peak at 2,094 m (6,870 ft). The park incorporates three rivers which drain into

50-535: A default on its debts. In 2019, the Australian think-tank Lowy Institute estimated Laos' debt to China at 45% of its GDP . In 2020, American credit agency Fitch Ratings assigned Laos a 'CCC' credit rating, stating that the country has "excessive debt". Between January 2021 and December 2021, the Laos–China Railway as a whole transported over 1 million passengers and 500,000 tonnes of cargo, according to

75-567: A comparative disadvantage in trade. During French rule , the French failed to develop a plan to build railways in Laos, with only the 7 km (4.3 mi) Don Det–Don Khon railway being completed. A railway link from China through Laos would greatly reduce cargo transit times and transportation costs between the two countries. The first talks about the railway linking Laos and China began in 2001. A Lao politician of Chinese descent, Somsavat Lengsavad ,

100-448: A number of environmental threats. The most significant is slash-and-burn agriculture. Harvesting of forest products, including timber, is also a threat. Hunting of wildlife is conducted by both residents and outsiders. Domesticated animals roam freely, disturbing wildlife and damaging wild habitats. Clearance of forested land for rubber plantations has occurred. Luang Namtha Luang Namtha ( Luang Nam Tha ) ( Lao : ມ. ຫລວງນໍ້າທາ)

125-445: A possibly unique species of muntjac . The frog species Amolops akhaorum is only known from the park. It is named for the local Akha people who helped with the fieldwork of the team who discovered the species in 2007. The park is host to diverse bird species: about 300 species are recorded here. A few species are unique in Laos to Nam Ha: crested finchbill , white-bellied redstart and white-necked laughingthrush . Nam Ha faces

150-517: A total of nine logistics centres in Laos, was officially opened by Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh at Thanaleng . A total of 32 stations are planned along the line, of which 21 stations were initially constructed, including 10 passenger stations and 11 cargo stations: Radio Free Asia reported in October 2021 that some Lao villagers displaced from their land by the line's construction complained that they had still not received compensation. In

175-580: Is a district as well as the capital of Luang Namtha Province in northern Laos . The city lies on the Tha River ( Nam Tha ). Luang Namtha is a popular tourist destination, and a base for treks, biking to the surrounding hill tribe villages. The Luang Namtha Museum is in the town. From January through May 1962, troops from the Royal Lao Army (RLA) fought the Pathet Lao and People's Army of Vietnam in

200-399: Is expected to connect with other railway lines planned for Laos. The station can accommodate up to 2,500 passengers with a total area of 14,543 square metres. The railway is built on a single track with passing loops and is electrified to China's Class I trunk railway standards, suitable for 160 km/h (100 mph) passenger and 120 km/h (75 mph) freight trains, making Laos

225-632: Is not yet possible for passenger trains. A branch to Thanaleng Dry Port freight yard was completed in July 2022, allowing transfer of cargo between Thai metre gauge railway and Laos standard gauge railway. However, the Vientiane end of the line will eventually cross the Mekong River on a new bridge to meet up with the Bangkok–Nong Khai high-speed railway once it is completed, making the connection. As of 2023,

250-650: The Battle of Luang Namtha . The battle ended with the RLA's headlong retreat southward 150 kilometers across the Mekong River . In the rainy season, Luang Namtha can be reached by boat from the Mekong River . It is connected by Highway 3 to both the Thai border at Houayxay - Chiang Khong (197 km (122 mi)), the Chinese border at Boten - Mengla County (60 km (37 mi)), and

275-546: The Mekong : the Nam Tha , Nam Fa and Nam Long . The Nam Tha is the Mekong's first major tributary after entering Laos. In 1980 Nam Ha was identified as a Provincial Protected Area. In 1993 Nam Ha National Protected Area was initially decreed to cover 697 km (270 sq mi). This was extended in 1999 to cover the present area of 2,224 km (860 sq mi). In 2003 Nam Ha

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300-595: The Burmese border at Xieng Kok - Kenglat . Luang Namtha is also served by Louang Namtha Airport , 6 km (3.7 mi) south of the city. It has 2 railway stations which served by Boten-Vientiane railway : Nateuy railway station at Nateuy and Boten railway station at Boten . Boten-Vientiane railway The Boten–Vientiane railway is the Lao section of the Laos–China Railway ( LCR ), running between

325-580: The Laotian government disburses $ 250 million from its national budget and borrows $ 480 million further from the Export–Import Bank of China. It is the most expensive and largest project to be constructed in Laos as of 2021. The cost of the railway has contributed to a US$ 480 million increase in Lao debt to the Export–Import Bank of China. Western publications subsequently claimed that Laos could end up falling into

350-648: The capital Vientiane and the northern town of Boten on the border with Yunnan , China. The line was officially opened on 3 December 2021. A collaborative project between Laos and China, the line's northern end is directly connected to the Chinese rail system at Mohan in Yunnan , through the Yuxi–Mohan railway , and has provisions in the south to link up with the Bangkok–Nong Khai high-speed railway in Thailand and possibly all

375-475: The design of this extension is in progress with a target completion date of 2028. The cost of the project is estimated at US$ 5.965 billion or RMB 37.425 billion. The railway is 60% funded with debt financing ($ 3.6 billion) from the Export–Import Bank of China , and the remaining 40% ($ 2.4 billion) by a joint venture company between the two countries, in which China holds a 70% stake. Of the remaining 30%,

400-555: The first country to connect to the Chinese high-speed railway network using Chinese technology. Passenger services employ CR200J trainsets for express passenger train and China Railway 25G passenger coaches for ordinary passenger train, and for freight hauling and normal passenger service, HXD3CA locomotives are used. On 4 December 2021, a day after opening the China–Laos railway, the Vientiane Logistics Park, one of

425-575: The last section in Oudomxay Province would be completed in May, leaving the project well on track for a 2021 opening. Track-laying was officially completed on 12 October 2021. The first EMU was delivered to Vientiane on 16 October 2021, and the line opened on 3 December 2021, a day after the 46th anniversary of the Lao PDR . The railway is expected to boost tourism , with passenger traffic to account for

450-457: The majority of traffic on the line. The Thai province of Nong Khai is also expected to gain more visitors through the railway, as well as fruit exports from Thailand to China benefiting from reduced transportation costs. As of 2024, it is the most significant Belt and Road Initiative project in Laos. Since the line uses a different rail gauge from the existing Thai Northeastern Line link from Bangkok to Thanaleng , running into Thailand

475-606: The railway with a build-operate-transfer arrangement. Construction work worth US$ 1.2 billion was awarded to the China Railway Group in September 2015. Construction began at Luang Prabang on 25 December 2016. At the end of 2017, the construction phase was 20% completed, and in September 2019 progress was reported as 80% completed. Unexploded bombs that have been dropped during the Vietnam War would also be removed along

500-583: The route. As of June 2020 , Chinese state media reported that the US$ 6 billion project was 90% complete. Work crews started laying track in Laos in March 2020, five years after breaking ground. With all of the hundreds of tunnels, bridges and viaducts completed, cargo service was scheduled to start from December 2021. In April 2021, the northernmost section in Luang Namtha Province was 97% complete. Track laying of

525-566: The transport authorities of Yunnan Province . In 2023, the railway had an annual ridership of 3.1 million passengers. 47% of the railway is spanned over 75 tunnels and 15% is set on viaducts spread over 167 bridges. Vientiane railway station , the largest station on the railway, is situated in Xay Village in Xaythany District and consists of four platforms with seven track lines and two additional platforms with three lines reserved; it

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550-447: The wake of the 2011 corruption scandal involving China's minister of railways , Liu Zhijun , but negotiations continued. In November 2012, the Laotian press reported that the money for the construction of the railway would be borrowed from the Export–Import Bank of China , and construction would be started in 2013 and completed in 2018. By 2015, a revised plan was agreed upon, under which both countries would jointly finance and operate

575-683: The way to Singapore via HSR. The railway ends at Vientiane South cargo station. The Boten–Vientiane railway is an integral section of the central line on the Kunming–Singapore railway , and was constructed as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The railway is part of the Laos-China Railway which is in turn part of the broader Laos-China Economic Corridor. Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia , which burdens it with

600-714: Was designated an ASEAN Heritage Park , the only one in Laos. In 2006 the Nam Ha Ecotourism Project (a joint UNESCO –Lao project to sustainably manage the park) won the Equator Prize . The park's main forest type is mixed secondary deciduous forest including secondary evergreen forest. At the park's lower elevations, in the Luang Namtha plain, human modification of the forest is evident and habitats include bamboo and scrub areas. Animal species include Assam macaque , clouded leopard , gaur , tiger , elephant and

625-493: Was reportedly the driving force behind the project on the Laotian side. In October 2010, plans were announced for a 530 kilometres (330 mi) standard gauge railway linking Vientiane to Xishuangbanna , in Yunnan province in China. Construction was expected to begin in 2011, for completion in 2014. There are plans to extend this railway south, from Vientiane across the Thai border to Bangkok . The project initially stalled in

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