Construction of a road linking the Dawei deep-sea port in Myanmar with Kanchanaburi will be delayed after Japan determined that 15-degree inclines along seven stretches of the road would be unsafe for lorries.
Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said on Friday construction of the 138km road from the Dawei deep-sea port to Ban Phu Nam Ron in Kanchanaburi must be postponed.
The project was due to start in March.
The delay comes following an inspection by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica).
The agency found the 15-degree inclines along the two-lane road, designed by Italian-Thai Development Plc (ITD), were too steep for trucks.
According to Jica, 20% of the road will pass through mountains while 80% will traverse flat areas.
To address the incline problem, the agency instead proposed the construction of seven tunnels through the mountains.
This would mean readjusting the budget which will need to be increased since the tunnels had never been included in the ITD's plans before and would cost more, Mr Arkhom said.
"This two-lane road is very important. So it is vital we get it right now instead making adjustments after the project is finished because that would be even more costly," he added.
He said if only 20% of the road plan has to be adjusted, Japan would be willing to provide a loan to fund the seven tunnels while the Thai government will offer ITD a loan for the remaining 80% of the road.
Mr Arkhom said the Thai government will also offer 4.5-billion-baht loan to the Myanmar government.
This proposal has yet to be presented to Nay Pyi Taw as Myanmar is in the process of forming a new government, he said.