Expressway Authority to Seek Cabinet Approval in December for Phuket Expressway Phase 1, Kathu-Patong, 16.757 Billion Baht, Tender in Q3 2027
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The Expressway Authority of Thailand is preparing to submit the Phuket Expressway Project Phase 1, covering the Kathu-Patong section, to the Cabinet for approval within December 2026, after the draft terms of reference is completed in about three months in April 2027, with contractor selection expected around the third quarter of 2027 before construction begins in October 2027. Construction will take about four years, with service opening in 2031. Mr. Surachet Laopoolsuk, Governor of the Expressway Authority of Thailand, disclosed that the Phuket Expressway Project, with a total distance of 34.60 km and a total budget of 84.218 billion baht, is divided into two phases. Phase 1, the Kathu-Patong section, has a distance of 3.98 km and a project value of 16.757 billion baht, comprising 5.792 billion baht in land expropriation costs, which is already 99.43% complete, and 10.965 billion baht in construction and supervision costs. The design has been revised to reduce the tunnel width from 17.1 metres to 14.2 metres while keeping the length at 1.85 kilometres, making it one of the largest tunnels in Thailand and among the largest in ASEAN. Phase 2, the Muang Mai-Koh Kaew-Kathu section, has a distance of 30.62 km and a project value of 67.461 billion baht, comprising 29.5478 billion baht in land expropriation costs and 37.91392 billion baht in construction and supervision costs. Detailed design studies are expected to be completed in January 2027, with submission to the Cabinet for approval in October 2027, land acquisition from January 2027 to December 2030, and construction from October 2028 to September 2031, taking about three years, with full service opening in 2031 alongside Phase 1. For Phase 1 tolls, rates have been reduced to 10 baht for motorcycles, 20 baht for four-wheeled vehicles, 40 baht for six- to ten-wheeled vehicles, and 60 baht for vehicles with more than ten wheels. Revenue is estimated at 960,000 baht per day, with a financial internal rate of return of 1.81% and an economic internal rate of return of 19.47%. The O&M system works, with a construction value of about 1.5 billion baht, will be jointly invested with the private sector through a public-private partnership model, and there are plans to raise funds through an infrastructure fund, or TFF, using about 1 billion baht of revenue from the Kanchanaphisek Expressway, Bang Phli-Suksawat section, which generates toll revenue of about 2.6 billion baht per year. The TFF is expected to be established in early 2027 if the Cabinet approves Phase 1. First-year traffic volume when service opens is projected at approximately 50,000-60,000 vehicles per day.
