Summary：The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) issued on Friday the draft Terms of Reference(TOR) for the construction of t...

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) issued on Friday the draft Terms of Reference(TOR) for the construction of the second section of the first phase of Thai-Chinese high-speed rail project in Korat Province, or formally as Nakhon Ratchasima.

The draft TOR for the second section of the high-speed rail project between Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima province calls for the construction of a 11-km-long section between Sikhio area and Kudchik area, which is estimated to cost 3.35 billion baht (about 101.51 million U.S. dollars), according to an SRT statement.

The TOR calls for an e-bidding to pick a winning contractor, who will be picked from among bidders in November. Interested parties and the public may submit viewpoints and comments pertaining to the TOR within Oct. 4.

Meanwhile, the initial phase of the construction covering 3.5 km between Klang Dong area and Pang Asok area in Nakhon Ratchasima is now under construction and expected to be completed later this year.

The third phase of the construction between Kaeng Khoi and Nakhon Ratchasima and the fourth phase between Bangkok and Kaeng Khoi, each covering a 119 km distance, are scheduled to go for a bit late 2018.

Apart from the first phase, or Bangkok Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand and China also talked on a second phase, which links Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai on Thailand-Laos border.

The whole rail project was designed to link Bangkok and northeastern Thailand with southern China through the Lao capital Vientiane across Mekong River from Nong Khai province.