"Construction on the seven billion dollar, 421 kilometre, Chinese-Lao railway "would begin shortly after all parties had reached an agreement and all preparations were complete," the Vientiane Times quoted Minister of Public Works and Transport Sommath Pholsena as saying.
The ADB called for caution, noting the cost was 80% of Laos' annual national budget...
Laos is to finance the scheme with a loan from China's EXIM Bank of China.
The planned railway would run from Luang Namtha on the Laos-China border to Vientiane, with a standard-gauge track of 1.435 metres, and a maximum speed of 160 kilometres per hour (kph), less than the 200 kph initially planned.
The line will require 76 tunnels and 154 bridges, including two across the Mekong River, and 31 stations.
