The government is considering raising the amount in joint investments with the private sector in an ambitious transport infrastructure plan to speed up its development and ease the state's financial burden.
The Public-Private Partnership Policy Committee, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister MR Pridiyathorn Devakula, yesterday assigned the State Enterprise Policy Office (Sepo) to consult the Transport Ministry and the Public Debt Management Office to increase the value of public-private partnerships (PPPs) for transport infrastructure projects from the 300 billion baht earlier planned out of the 1.9-trillion-baht infrastructure projects planned from 2015-22.
"The committee agreed the role of the PPP should be increased in order to speed up transport infrastructure projects and to reduce the state's investment and debt burden," Sepo director-general Kulit Sombatsiri said.
How much the private sector will contribute is not yet known.
Mr Kulit said the PPP would get off the ground soon, as 17 relevant organic laws and regulations facilitating joint investments by the private sector would be finalised this month.
The organic laws include those governing the calculation of the value of the projects, the method to evaluate the projects, procedures to invite private firms into joint ventures, the screening process, contract standards and joint investment by private firms in projects worth less than 1 billion baht.
The new regulations will allow the ministries responsible to approve projects worth less than 1 billion baht.
Only projects worth more than 5 billion baht are required to be vetted by the committee.
For projects valued from 1-5 billion baht, only those involving infrastructure and public services must go before the committee, while other projects will be approved by the relevant ministries.
Development projects expected to be implemented this year include those pertaining to the digital economy, water management and social infrastructure projects for education and public health.
Sepo will set the priority of the planned PPP projects as well as study the pros and cons of infrastructure development between the state and private investors.
The committee also approved strategic plans featuring categories of infrastructure covered by the PPPs.
They include mass transit, tollways, deep-sea ports, high-speed rail, telecommunications networks and high-speed internet, distribution centres, motorways, joint ticketing systems, airport management in commercial areas, water management, irrigation systems and waste treatment.
Also covered are education and public health services, infrastructure for science, technology and innovation, pharmaceutical and medical equipment management and convention centres that use state assets.