The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) aims to develop its two key pieces of land for commercial purposes to prop up its revenues.
They cover a piece of land near Mae Nam railway station in Klong Toey district covering a total of 260 rai, worth 10.4 billion baht, and a 359-rai plot of land near the Energy Complex, worth 18.3 billion baht.
Panthop Malakul Na Ayutthaya, a SRT deputy governor overseeing property management, said the proposal for a 30-year land lease for the plots will be delivered to the SRT's board for approval.
A consultancy firm has confirmed the plots have the potential to create revenue for the SRT, he said. After the plan is approved by the SRT board, it will be forwarded to the Transport Ministry and then the cabinet for final approval.
The development will come under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) scheme, with private companies invited to jointly invest next year.
Referring to a property development project at Bang Sue station covering a total of 218 rai, Mr Panthop said the scheme has been approved by the SRT board and will enter the PPP programme.
The project is expected to generate 17 billion baht in SRT revenue throughout the contract, he said, adding it also complies with the State Enterprise Policy Committee's directives which want the SRT to make use of its land to boost revenue.
The SRT also plans to lease its 448-rai land plot in the Makkasan area of Bangkok to the Finance Ministry's Treasury Department for 99 years in exchange for clearing its accumulated debt of 60 billion baht, Mr Panthop said.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the arrangement will be signed on July 1, when the first section of land, covering 105 rai, will be delivered. Another 343-rai section will be handed over within two years, he noted.
Mr Panthop said the SRT is holding 5,000 lease contracts for its properties, which bring in substantial revenues. It also has 10,000 contracts in relation to train operations.
The SRT is expected to earn 2.7 billion baht this year, up to 2.5 billion baht of which will come from property management and the rest from train operations.