Mega Railway Project in Borneo set to Transform the Region

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji Haji Noor said, on 31 March 2024, that the proposed Trans Borneo Railway project linking Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei and Kalimantan, Indonesia, will transform the economic landscape of the region.

“The project will spur and boost the economies of the whole region including enhancing people-to-people connectivity; facilitating trade; promoting growth of industries at the cross-border areas; and boosting tourism," he said.

In November 2023, Federal Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi said his ministry has received a preliminary proposal on the mega-railway Trans-Borneo Railway Project from the Ministry of Transport. The railway lines will link Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. The Federal government has approved a feasibility study on the project and Brunei-based Brunergy Utama Sdn Bhd will embark on the construction in two phases involving routes spanning 1,620 kilometres.

The first phase will connect cities from the West to the East coast, beginning in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, and ending in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, while the second phase will involve North and East Kalimantan connecting the main route with Samarinda and to the new capital of Indonesia, Nusantara in Kalimantan.