Prayut Cabinet passes on BMA’s THB78-bn Green Line debt issue to next govt
The outgoing Cabinet will leave it to the next government to decide how to handle the 78-billion-baht debt the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) owes the Bangkok Syktrain operator.
Cabinet secretary-general Natjaree Anuntasilpa said the Cabinet of Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha acknowledged the debt of 78.83 billion baht that the BMA owes Bangkok Mass Transit System, the operator of the BTS Skytrain, for operations and extension of the Green Line railway.
The weekly Cabinet meeting was moved from Tuesday to Wednesday as many Cabinet members were busy with the first meeting of the new House on Tuesday.
According to sources from the meeting, Interior Minister Anupong Paochinda presented the report from the BMA that its Krungthep Thanakom business arm owed 78.83 billion to the BTSC.
The sources said the caretaker Cabinet could only acknowledge the report and left it to the next government to make a decision on how to handle the huge debt.
The BMA report asked the Cabinet to approve a budget for the city administration to repay its debt to the BTSC.
According to the report, the debt included 55 billion baht for the construction and land expropriation cost incurred in the extension of the Green Line plus interest, the 22-billion-baht cost incurred in hiring the BTSC to install electric and mechanical systems for the extension, as well as a loan of 1.5 billion baht the BMA took from the Finance Ministry.
The Prayut Cabinet had earlier ordered the BMA to present a detailed report after the Cabinet held at least seven meetings to discuss BMA’s debt to BTSC.
The Interior Ministry, which supervises the BMA, had earlier asked the Cabinet to grant extension of the BTS Skytrain concession to adjust the debt the BMA owes BTSC. But the Transport Ministry disagreed with the Interior proposal, so the Cabinet asked the BMA to come up with a report with more details about the debt.
The debt was the cost occurred from the construction and operation of the Green Line extension from Mor Chit to Saphan Mai and Kukot, and from Bearing station to Samut Prakan. The outstanding debt was as of March-end this year, the sources added.
Earlier, BMA Governor Chadchart Sittipunt had proposed that the Cabinet approve 22 billon baht for paying the debt over the system installation cost and renegotiate a public-private partnership contract.
