VIENTIANE, May 9 (Xinhua) -- More than 5 billion U.S. dollars is needed to build a railway linking Lao capital Vientiane to a seaport in central Vietnam's Ha Tinh province, local daily Vientiane Times Tuesday quoted study results as saying.
The findings were part of a technical support project for a feasibility study of the railway.
The Vientiane-Thakhaek-Vung Ang railway has a planned length of 554.72km, with 102.7km of the track to be in Vietnam.
The Korea International Cooperation Agency, which funded the technical support project, estimated that Vietnam would need more than 1.5 billion U.S. dollars to build the section of railway passing through its territory.
The study results were given to Vietnam's Ministry of Transport last Thursday, according to Vietnamese media.
A source at Laos' Ministry of Public Works and Transport said the findings would be submitted to the Lao government to seek guidance on further steps to progress the project, including possible sources of finance.
Lao government spokesman Chaleun Yiapaoher said the cabinet had not yet received the study results.
The cabinet has also not yet held detailed discussions on possible sources of financing for construction of the railway, said the spokesman.
The railway and an expressway are part of the cooperation framework between Laos and Vietnam until 2030, Chaleun said, referring to the planned Vientiane-Hanoi Expressway linking the two countries' capitals.
The railway will enable landlocked Laos to access sea trade routes via the Vung Ang seaport, which the Lao and Vietnamese governments signed a deal in April, 2017 to jointly develop.