On April 1, a Brunei-based infrastructure company proposed the development of Trans-Borneo Railways, a high-speed rail network which would span over 1,600 kilometers across Borneo from east to west and north to south. The pan-island transportation nexus would directly connect Brunei and its two larger ASEAN neighbors of Malaysia and Indonesia, including a station at the latter’s future capital city of Nusantara. The project’s preliminary developer, Brunergy Utama, has not yet been vetted or approved by the Sultan. Nonetheless, the railway is being explored by the other affected governments, as the Brunei-born concept has the potential to revolutionize commercial connections on the island.
Borneo hosts rich eco-tourism, energy, critical mineral, and agricultural sectors, all of which U.S. businesses hold a significant stake in. Interconnecting the island with high-speed rail would mean expedited and more productive business across the board, not to mention more efficient domestic and international personal travel. If approved, the project could outsize Brunei’s role as a business player in the region. With a current projected cost of 70 billion USD and cross-border agreements that would require deliberation, responses from stakeholder governments in Malaysia and Indonesia vary, but the idea of Trans-Borneo Railways remains on the table for further discussion.
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