Prek Tameak: 3rd Cambodian-Chinese Friendship Bridge Inauguration

Hun Sen praised China for providing unconditional aid to Cambodia

Thursday, June 7, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Heng Soy

Prime Minister Hun Sen praised China for providing unconditional aid to Cambodia. Hun Sen made the praise during the opening ceremony for the Prek Ta Meak bridge construction site, on Wednesday. The bridge will be built with Chinese loan. Hun Sen declared that Chinese aid to Cambodia is based on actual needs and it is not linked to any condition, nor will China ask for any payment back. Hun Sen said: “Normally, Chinese aid comes with no condition imposed, based on our need, we requested a bridge in Prek Ta Meak, then they sent people to build the Prek ta Meak bridge without attaching any condition such as telling us to do this or that before they provide us (the aid).” In the past, Hun Sen was irritated with donor countries which imposed on the government to improve its governance, or to ratify the anti-corruption law, etc… Hun Sen considered these demands as violations of Cambodia’s sovereignty.

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KI-Media Note: China Xinhua news agency indicated that the bridge will be built by a Chinese company (and a Chinese company only), and will be finance by a preferential buyer's credit loan from China. Therefore, Cambodian children will have to pay back this loan way after Hun Sen is long gone from power. Click here to read Xinhua's article.

Cambodia launches construction of Prek Tamak Bridge over Mekong River

June 06, 2007

The Cambodian government held ground breaking ceremony here on Wednesday for the construction of the Prek Tamak Bridge over Mekong River.

The project is one of the four Cambodian infrastructure projects under preferential buyer's credit loan from China, Chinese Ambassador Zhang Jinfeng said while addressing the ceremony, adding that she believes the construction of the bridge will promote the economic development of Cambodia.

According to the project information, the Prek Tamak Bridge is 1,060 meters in length and 13.5 meters in width, with a designed speed of 60 km per hour.

The construction period of the 43.5 million U.S. dollars project will last 50 months, it said. The contractor of the project is China's Shanghai Construction (Group) General Company.

The China Eximbank signed an agreement with the Cambodian government on Jan. 22 to offer 207 million U.S. dollars of loans to develop Cambodian infrastructure construction, including the construction of the National Road No. 8, the National Road No. 76,the Prek Tamak Bridge and another bridge.

Source: Xinhua

Opening of Prek Ta Meak bridge construction sites

Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

The Rasmei Kampuchea newspaper reported that Prime Minister Hun Sen will inaugurate the opening of the Prek Ta Meak and Prek Kdam bridge construction sites on 06 and 11 June 2007. An official from the Ministry of Public Works said that the planned Prek Ta Meak bridge will be 1060-meter long, and will cost $43 million to build, and the Prek Kdam bridge will be 875-meter long and will cost $28 million. The two bridges will be built the Shanghai company with portion of the $200 million package loan funds provided by China for the construction of National Road No. 8, and a section of National Road No. 76. The Prek Kdam bridge is the first bridge that will cross the Tonle Sap river, linking National Road No. 5 to National Road No. 6. The Prek Ta Meak bridge is the second bridge in Cambodia crossing the Mekong river, the first bridge crossing the Mekong river is the Kizona bridge (Tonle Bit bridge).