Funan Techo Canal

The Funan Techo Canal (ព្រែកជីកហ្វូណនតេជោ), officially known as the Tonle Bassac Navigation Road and Logistics System Project is a proposed 180 km long canal in Cambodia, connecting Phnom Penh Autonomous Port with Kep and the Gulf of Thailand.





The canal would begin at the Takeo Canal of the Mekong River, pass through the Ta Ek Canal of the Bassac River and finally merge with the Ta Hing Canal of the Bassac River in Koh Thom district. It would connect Phnom Penh directly with the country's only deep-sea port in Sihanoukville and the new port in Kampot.

The current plan includes constructing three dams with sluices and eleven bridges. The canal will be 100 m wide and 5.4 m deep, supporting vessels up to 3,000 DWT. The target completion date is 2028. It is expected to cost 1.7 billion USD.

The project is funded entirely by China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), who is currently (March 2024) working on a feasibility study of the project. The project will be developed under a BOT (build-operate-transfer) contract.

Currently Cambodia relies heavily on using Vietnamese ports, notably that of Cai Mep. The new canal would significantly reduce this dependency. Vietnam has also raised environmental concerns.