The new rail route from Thailand to Guangzhou via Laos and China reduces the travel time for freight trains to only four and a half days, covering 3,453 km. This makes it a fast, safe and cost-effective way to transport goods. On April 23, 2023, Pan-Asia Silk Road Ltd (PAS) shipped 25 containers of durian from Thailand to China using this route. The train reached Guangzhou in 4/6 days, one day ahead of schedule.

PAS is collaborating with Thai state-owned enterprises State Railway of Thailand (SRT) and PTT Plc to better exploit the potential of rail transport between the two countries.

PAS is using modern containers from CIMC, a Chinese partner whose containers have been certified for use in China. The specific details of CIMC’s containers include:

1. The status of each individual container can be checked online via GPS, including location, temperature, trajectory and products inside.
2. The temperature inside the container can be adjusted from –30C to +30C, and can be remotely controlled during transportation.
3. Each container records its transportation log for up to two years through the cloud system, which can be accessed from anywhere for business analysis.

4. The containers are equipped with an alarm system that detects abnormal activity/temperature or when the container is opened prematurely. The company will be notified immediately to resolve the problem in a timely manner.