Location: |
Sahakon Nikhom, Thong Pha Phum District, Kanchanaburi 71180.
(14.746940, 98.814363) |
Open: |
After appointment. [2025] |
Fee: |
yes. [2025] |
Classification: |
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Light: | bring torch |
Dimension: | L=50 km. |
Guided tours: | L=2 km. |
Photography: | yes |
Accessibility: | |
Bibliography: | Dr.-Ing. Bruno Heide (2024): Das Bergbauunternehmen Kemco in Thailand bergbau 7-8/2024, pp 205-205. pdf |
Address: |
Dr. Bhol Klipbua Mine Tunnel, Sahakon Nikhom, Thong Pha Phum District, Kanchanaburi 71180, Tel: +66-81-362-8857.
S.K. Nikhom Subdistrict Municipality, Tel: +66-34-685038. Mr. Samruam Jaisue, Mayor of Sahakon Nikhom Subdistrict Municipality, Tel: +66-81-995-4997. Mr. Wari Phaphumkerik, Deputy Mayor of Sahakorn Nikhom Municipality, Tel: +66-84-717-5185. |
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info. |
1978 | contract between Sachtleben Bergbau and Metallgesellschaft (MG), foundation of Kemco (Kanchanaburi Exploration and Mining Co. Ltd). |
1979 | first lead produced in the flotation. |
อุโมงค์เหมืองแร่ ดร.ผล กลีบบัว (Xumongkh̒ h̄emụ̄xng ræ̀ dr.P̄hl klīb bạw) is officially translated Dr. Bhol Klipbua Mine Tunnel. That’s what the sign on the entrance says, however, transliteration is always tricky, and translators commonly translate it as Dr. Phon Kleepbua Mine Tunnel. It is also named อุโมงค์ 3 มิติ (Xumongkh̒ 3 miti, 3D tunnel). We have listed the site as a show mine, but actually it is not a show mine in the common sense. It is an abandoned mine which is actually named Sahakorn Nikom Mine, and it is a popular motorbike and 4WD ride. The point is, the mine has massive tunnels with a length of 50 km, most are large enough for motorbikes and cars. The main tunnel crosses the mountain and is 2 km long, which is actually a 5-minute drive. It’s also possible to drive other tunnels, but a guide is in this case essential.
There is a lot of misinformation on the web, especially YouTube videos where people drive there and through. Obviously that’s possible, as the tunnel is not gated. However, visiting the mine tunnel on your own is actually not permitted. The Sahakorn Nikhom Subdistrict Municipality has permission to use the area from the Royal Forest Department. Tourists must use the community’s car and tour guide to enter the tunnel. They operate the mine tours as a way to give work and income to local people. We have listed some people which you may call to make a reservation. We could not find a website or other contact data. Phone is actually a little difficult if you do not speak Thai, although we guess most Thai speak English.
The visit normally works this way: make a reservation, get a means of transportation to the office, which is a little south of the mine entrance. The tour is done with a guide in an old Jeep. Located northwest of Bangkok, it is a day trip.
Dr. Bhol Klipbua, was the owner of several mining concessions in the 1960s, but actually neither the technology nor the funding to open a mine. He was a miner who had learned at the Mining University at Clausthal-Zellerfeld in Germany. So he contacted German friends for a cooperation, and finally in 1978 the German mining company Sachtleben Bergbau and his company Metallgesellschaft (MG) started a co-operation. They founded the company Kemco (Kanchanaburi Exploration and Mining Co. Ltd) which operated the mine. A German geologist named Dr. Dieter Müller had surveyed the orebody with drilling over years. He had found 1.3 Million tonnes of ore with a content of 11 % lead and zinc. The main problems with the site were the lack of infrastructure and roads or railroads to transport the material and ore. The last 25 km of the road were dirt road and impassable during wet season. The work was quite difficult, but after only one year the floatation was working and the first lead concentrate fell from the filter in the flotation. Over the next 20 years 4,5 Mio. t raw ore was mined and 600.000 t concentrated ore produced. However, mining finally ended, and the mines are closed now. As always in such cases the locals which were employed at the mine now cannot get any other job.