Obstacles to Navigation
From Vientiane to Savannaket
This river route is shared by two countries: Lao PDR and Thailand. Has a length of about 455 km.
The river mainly flows through flood plains and some mountainous sections. Tropical vegetation covers both sides of this river.
The route has 10 reefs and shoals, many sections will be difficult, impeding boat traffic due to the appearance of rocky outcrops
and sand dunes, reducing the width of the canal by up to 25 meters although the area is large. of the river is quite wide. During
the low water season, the depth can be limited to 0.7 meters due to shallow sand dunes and rocky outcrops, thus impeding navigation
(except for small boats).
Ships with a tonnage of about 300 tons can go to sea during the high water season.
From Savannaket to Veune Kham
This river route is partly bordered by Lao PDR and Thailand, and partly within the territory of Laos. It is a mixture of hilly areas and flood plains
with tropical vegetation. There are 37 reefs, rapids and shoals. Quite a few rapids stretch over 60km in the vicinity of Khemmarat, restricting
traffic during the high and medium water season.
However, in the previous period, when the water was high, the flow of some places could be as high as 4 to 5 m/s between narrow rocky canyons,
obstructing navigation. The river route between Savannakhet and Pakse was used for internal travel in the past high and medium water season.
However, the line has been used less since 1935 after the highway from Ho Chi Minh City to Savannakhet was opened.
Routine maritime operations for vessels up to 100 tons tonnage resume downstream Pakse to Khinak, Khone waterfall upstream. Previously, ships with
a tonnage of up to 300 tons could be used on the river route this stretch. Due to the barrier of Khone waterfall, boat navigation ends at Khinak. In the past,
goods used to be transshipped across Khone Island by a 5 km railway, to river downstream of the falls.
Please find more details on overall obstacles to navigation in the Mekong river in PDF file below;
