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LUANG NAMTHA, LAOS, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Around 1,000 heavy trucks from China are expected to daily pass through the Boten International Crossing Border Checkpoint in Luang Namtha Province once the Lao-China Railway Construction Project begins, Lao official told Xinhua and other media.
"Currently, there are more than 400 trucks passing the checkpoint per day. To receive the large number of arriving trucks, the checkpoint will extend its working hours from normal to 10 p.m.," said Phonexay Chanthasone, head of Lao Boten Crossing Border Checkpoint.
The goods imported from China in 2016 amounted to more than 85 million U.S. dollars while the export volume from Laos was 8 million U.S. dollars, said the official.
Most imported goods from China were heavy machines and household utensils. Laos' main export to China was agricultural produce.
The Laos-China Railway Project is likely to bring such benefits to the Laos as strong economic infrastructure, the achievement of cooperation and connectivity strategies, increased foreign investment, and reduced production costs, according to Lao Ministry of Public Works and Transport.
Passenger trains on Laos-China Railway will travel at 160 km per hour, while the speed of rail freight will be 120 km per hour.
The railway is expected to link with the track in Thailand to form part of the regional rail link known as the Kunming-Singapore railway, covering a total distance of about 3,000 km.
