Groundbreaking Ceremony Date of Funan Techo Canal Project Revealed

The Tonle Bassac Navigation and Logistics System Project, named the "Funan Techo Canal" Project and a historic canal project in Cambodia, will have a ground-breaking ceremony in the fourth quarter of 2024.

According to the official Facebook page of the Ministry of Public Works, on the afternoon of January 17, 2024, H.E. Peng Ponea, Minister of Public Works and Transport, stated, "We will have the Funan Techo Canal project, a historic canal project in Cambodia, which plans to open the construction site during the fourth quarter of 2024."

Please note that the "Funan Techo Canal" project is about 180 kilometers from the Takeo canal of the Mekong River, through the Ta Ek canal of the Tonle Bassac, then pass into the Ta Hing canal of the Tonle Bassac, Koh Thom district, and continue to the sea of Kep Province, passing through four provinces, including Kandal, Takeo, Kampot, and Kep. The waterway will be 100 meters wide at the top, 80 meters wide at the bottom, and 5.4 meters deep (navigation depth of 4.7 meters and safety gap of 0.7 meters) and have two navigation lanes that can be safely in and out.

The project will build three navigation dams, 11 bridges, a 208-kilometer sidewalk, and provide navigation assistance and other river-crossing infrastructure. The construction of the new waterway project is estimated to cost $1.7 billion and take about four years.

According to the study, this project will provide many benefits, including: reducing the duration, distance, and cost of current transport; the establishment of commercial areas and logistics centers; the development of several new satellite ports; the expansion of agricultural, irrigation, aquaculture, and livestock development zones; support for the development of Cambodia's Fourth Economic Pole; job creation at Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, Phnom Penh Autonomous Port, and other ports; promoting urban development and urbanization; and promoting real estate growth.

On October 17, 2023, Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet presided over the signing ceremony of the framework agreement between Deputy Prime Minister Sun Chanthol and the First Vice Chairman of the Council for the Development of Cambodia with representatives of China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) to provide the way for the company to study the project in detail in 8 months. After eight months of study, negotiations are underway to sign a construction agreement.