China building high speed rail for Indonesia, Iran and maybe Australia

China will build high speed rail in Iran

Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed Saturday with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani to help construct Iran’s high-speed train system as part of China’s "One Belt and One Road" initiative to build a modern "Silk Road."

The two sides agreed to expand bilateral trade to $600 billion in the coming 10 years.

The amount of trade between Iran and China was about $52 billion in 2014 but dropped to $42 billion last year due to falls in oil prices and sanctions against Iran, the Iran State News Agency reported Friday.

The two countries also agreed to cooperate on the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

China has started construction of Indonesia first high speed rail project

Indonesia’s first high-speed railway project, being built by China, has finally started to make tracks and a ground-breaking ceremony has been held in Jakarta.

The 150-kilometer railway will link the capital with Bandung in West Java. The route will serve four stations in its first phase, including Halim, Karawang, Walini and Tegalluar.

China was selected by the Indonesian government to build the nation’s first bullet rail link last year. The cost of the project is estimated at U.S.$5.5 billion, with 75 percent of financing from the China Development Bank.