On April 11, the first project inspection meeting of Phonghong Traction Substation of China-Laos Railway was held in Laos, where all parties involved reviewed the design, construction technologies, and engineering quality of the traction substation located in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. The participants also inspected the design technology, construction quality, equipment reliability and detailed techniques at the project site. Two days later, the Laos-China Railway Company sent a letter of congratulation and appreciation to China Railway Wuhan Electrification Bureau Group Co., Ltd. on the success of the inspection meeting.

China-Laos Railway is the first electrified railroad in Laos, and Phonghong Traction Substation is the first of its kind to be built in Laos. Constructed by China Railway Wuhan Electrification Bureau Group Co., Ltd., the traction substation covers an area of 6,000 square meters, and is responsible for power supply for areas between Phonghong and Vangvieng, a tourist resort in Laos, as well as the overhead catenary systems in some areas.  

There are nine traction substations, seven distribution substations and 32 low-voltage substations along the Boten-Vientiane section of China-Laos Railway. The Phonghong Traction Substation has set a model for the electrification project of the Boten-Vientiane railway which is ready to enter the equipment installation stage with high standard and high quality. After the China-Laos Railway is opened for operation at the end of 2021 as scheduled, it is expected to slash the travel time between Kunming, capital of southwest China’s Yunnan Province, and Vientiane to less than one day.