(Yicai Global) Aug. 21 -- China and Thailand have made headway in their negotiations to build the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima rail line, the first phase of a high-speed railroad linking the two countries.

Wang Xiaotao, vice chairman of China's National Development and Reform Commission, and Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, Thailand's transport minister, led the negotiations, China News Service reported. The two expedited talks on the project and aimed to have contracts signed by early September so construction can begin in October.

Thailand will be responsible for the civil engineering involved in the railroad, and Thai equipment and raw materials will be used where possible. Many Thai engineers and architects will also be involved in the railroad design construction, which has been contracted to China.

China will assist Thailand in constructing, operating and maintaining the high-speed rail line and bring the technology required into the country.

Both governments will officially sign the contract for the China-Thailand Railway Project when Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha visits Beijing on Sept. 4 to Sept. 5, the country's ambassador to China, Phya Abhibal Rajamaitri, told People's Daily on Aug. 19.

The new railroad will also link China with Laos, transform Thailand into a transformation hub in the Indochinese peninsula and stimulate economic growth in the country, particularly in the northeastern regions, while benefiting all nations along the route.

Preparations for the second phase of the project, the Nakhon Ratchasima-Nong Khai section, will start soon.

The Thai Office of the Prime Minister said last month that it had approved the USD5.2-billion budget for the first phase of the railroad, which will be about 253 kilometers long and come into operation in 2021. The maximum speed will be 250 kilometers an hour.

Construction has already begun on the Laos section of the railroad.