National Road 10 Opens, Linking Cambodia’s Northwest to the Koh Kong Coast
Cambodia opened the 198.5-kilometre National Road 10 on 1 October 2026, connecting Samlout in Battambang province with Khemarak Phoumin city in Koh Kong through the mountains of Pursat.
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Cambodia has officially opened National Road 10, a 198.5-kilometre highway that connects the country’s northwest with the southwest coast. The opening ceremony took place on 1 October 2026, presided over by Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia.
Key points
- National Road 10 was officially opened on 1 October 2026.
- The 198.5 km two-lane road runs from Samlout district in Battambang through Veal Veng district in Pursat to Khemarak Phoumin city in Koh Kong.
- It includes the Kingdom’s tallest bridge and crosses former civil-war terrain of mountains and valleys.
- Built from March 2020 to May 2025 by China Road and Bridge Corporation with a preferential loan from China.
Through the mountains to the sea
The two-lane road runs from Samlout district in Battambang province through Veal Veng district in Pursat province to Khemarak Phoumin city, the capital of Koh Kong province. It crosses a landscape of mountains, ravines and valleys that was once a civil-war battlefield, and includes the Kingdom’s tallest bridge.
Construction ran from March 2020 to May 2025. The road was built by China Road and Bridge Corporation and financed with a preferential loan from the Chinese government.
“A crucial economic artery”
Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet described the highway as a strategic route and a crucial economic artery that has significantly reduced travel times, transport costs and distances. He said it gives farmers a direct gateway from their fields to markets.
H.E. Peng Ponea, Minister of Public Works and Transport, said the road strengthens the national transport network, makes it easier to move agricultural and agro-industrial goods, and opens up tourism to the area’s gorges, valleys and streams.
New routes for travellers
For visitors, the road offers a new overland link between Battambang and the coast at Koh Kong, through some of the least-visited and most scenic countryside in the Kingdom.
Sources: Xinhua via The Star, Global Times.
Frequently asked questions
Where does National Road 10 go?
From Samlout district in Battambang province, through Veal Veng district in Pursat province, to Khemarak Phoumin city in Koh Kong province: 198.5 km in total.
When did National Road 10 open?
It was officially opened on 1 October 2026, after construction from March 2020 to May 2025.
Who built National Road 10?
China Road and Bridge Corporation, financed with a preferential loan from the Chinese government.
