State-owned enterprise TOT is urging the government to legally force telecom and broadcasting companies to put all their existing overhead cables in Bangkok into the TOT's underground pipes.
The firm believes the move will help accelerate the government's roadmap for turning Bangkok into an Asean hub by 2021.
TOT owns underground pipes with a combined length of 2,000 kilometres in Bangkok, but telecom and broadcasting firms have little interest in renting TOT's pipes or installing their own overhead cables underground.
"If these firms are legally forced to rent our pipes, all existing overhead cables will be buried by 2019, two years ahead of schedule," said TOT president Monchai Noosong.
The government's roadmap seeks to completely remove all overhead power lines and telecom broadcasting cables in three provinces by 2021.
The roadmap calls for cables to be put underground in Bangkok, Samut Prakan and Nonthaburi provinces, with a combined 127km on 39 roads at a cost of 51.7 billion baht.
Mr Monchai said TOT can put all 2,000km underground by 2019.
"TOT alone has no authority to force telecom and broadcasting firms to rent our pipes -- this falls under the authority of the government," said the president.
He declined to comment whether TOT wants the prime minister to invoke Section 44 for this matter, but said the government must overrule the Telecom Business Act.
The five state agencies signed a memorandum of understanding in July 2016 to initiate the removal of the clutter created by overhead electric wires and telecom cables.
The five agencies comprise Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA), TOT, National Broadcast and Telecommunication Commission, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and the Royal Thai Police.
MEA is responsible for replacing all existing overhead power lines with underground lines, with investment of 48.7 billion baht. TOT is responsible for providing an underground system, and grouping all existing telecom and broadcasting cables into its pipes. But only five roads have installed overhead cables underground: Ratchaprarop, Si Ayutthaya, Yothi, Phetchaburi and Rama I.
Mr Monchai said the telecom broadcasting firms will continue to lack incentive to remove their overhead cables unless MEA completely demolishes its electricity poles. TOT provides underground pipes for rent to telecom firms installing cables nationwide at a monthly fee of 18,000 baht per km. The lease generated 600 million baht in revenue for TOT last year.
Mr Monchai said Bangkok metropolitan has a total 5,000km of underground pipes, of which TOT owns some 2,000 covering 2,000km.
"TOT is ready to expand our pipe capacity to cover all 5,000km if the government assigns the installation of cables underground to us," he said, adding that TOT is more capable than other firms to invest in and expand the underground pipe system.
TOT will acquire an additional 1,500km of pipes this October after the expiry of the 25-year fixed-line phone concession of True Corporation.
Under the concession's build-transfer-operate conditions, True must transfer telecom assets, including underground pipes to TOT after the concession expires.