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Published on August 17, 2007

The Finance Ministry has voiced concern over a slow rate of investment by state enterprises, which it says is delaying the country's logistics and mass-transit projects.

"State enterprises have money, but they are not spending it as they should be," State Enterprise Policy Office director-general Areepong Bhoocha-oom said yesterday.

In the first 10 months of the current fiscal year, the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) spent only 15.63 per cent of its planned investment. With the fiscal year ending on September 30, the SRT has just a month and a half to spend Bt22.24 billion.

This delivers a big blow to the country's logistics system when the government has been planning to upgrade the rail system in order to save transportation costs, Areepong said. If the SRT's low rate of budget disbursement continues, it will take 20 years to expand the single-line system to double tracks instead of the planned 10 years to complete a modern rail system, he said.

Areepong attributes the problem to weak management at the SRT and delays caused by e-auction procedures for awarding contracts. Hopefully, a new management team at the SRT will solve the problem, he said.

The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) has spent only 1.42 per cent of its planned investment in Bangkok's mass-transit project. It has Bt15.33 billion remaining to be spent in the current fiscal year and Areepong expects the MRTA's spending rate to improve because the government has approved construction of the new rapid-transit Purple Line.

The Expressway and Rapid Transit Authority has used only 5.86 per cent of its planned investment, leaving Bt23.86 billion sitting idle.

Capital spending by the Port Authority of Thailand has also been delayed. It has disbursed only 33.67 per cent of its budget and has Bt974 million left unspent.

Airports of Thailand has spent only 27.10 per cent of its investment budget, leaving Bt12.15 billion sitting idle, while the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly has spent just 2.28 per cent of its planned investment because of a government review of its new production projects.

Areepong is concerned that 11 key state enterprises, whose fiscal years end on September 30, will not meet spending targets totalling Bt191.56 billion. As at the end of July, their spending had reached only 40.61 per cent of the total sum and they then had two months left in which to spend Bt113.76 billion.

However, he is optimistic that another six major state enterprises - PTT, TOT, CAT Telecom, the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the Provincial Electricity Authority and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand - will be able to increase their spending rates.

This group follows a fiscal year ending on December 31 and as of July 31, their combined capital spending had reached 29.07 per cent of their planned investments. They have a combined Bt98.41 billion remaining, and this is expected to be spent later in the year.

Overall, the State Enterprise Policy Office expects that 17 state enterprises whose investment accounts for 90 per cent of state investment will finish their various fiscal years having spent close to 80 per cent of their budgeted funds.

While their combined planned investments amounted to Bt330.32 billion, their combined spending as of the end of July had reached only 35.77 per cent of the full sum.

Wichit Chaitrong

The Nation