Laos has agreed in principle to study the feasibility of building an expressway connecting Vientiane with Houaphan province. The project began in 2022 and has continued into 2026 with further surveys, design work and construction planning.

A 2022 Agreement Sets the Foundation

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the project was signed on April 4, 2022, in Vientiane. The signatories were the Lao government and a foreign investment company. Two private companies would provide the funding under a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, with a 50-year concession period.

Once the study and survey work is complete, construction is expected to take about five years. Officials say the expressway would improve transport links and support economic and social development in the provinces along the route and across the country as a whole.

A Three-Phase Route

The planned expressway follows a new alignment and is divided into three sections:

• Phase 1: From Kilometer 21 in Saysettha district, Vientiane, to Anouvong district in Xaysomboun province.
• Phase 2: From Anouvong district in Xaysomboun to Phaek district in Xiangkhouang province.
• Phase 3: From Phaek district in Xiangkhouang to Houamuang district in Houaphan province.

Momentum in 2026

In 2026, the Committee for the Promotion and Management of Investment signed a new MOU on April 27 at the Laadsavong Vanda Vista Hotel in Vientiane. The agreement covers the study, survey, design and development of this strategic expressway.

The project was also confirmed in the latest transport planning. At a meeting on October 13, 2026, at the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, officials reviewed progress for the first nine months of the year and set priorities for the final quarter of 2026 and for 2027. The expressway, running from Vientiane through Xaysomboun, Xiangkhouang and Houaphan to the Nam Soy international border checkpoint, is included in the plan.