The State Enterprise Policy Office (Sepo) expects to push forward government investment projects this year under public-private partnerships (PPP) valued at close to the government's target of 47 billion baht.
According to Tibordee Wattanakul, director-general of Sepo, the PPP investments should help reduce the government's fiscal burden.
As of February, the PPP Committee had approved 18 billion baht in PPP investment projects for fiscal 2024, specifically for the development of berths B3, B4 and B5 at Laem Chabang Port.
Mr Tibordee anticipates by the end of June, an additional 10 billion baht in PPP investment projects will have been approved.
He said several other projects plan to use the PPP model, such as the cruise terminal project on Koh Samui.
This project, valued at more than 10 billion baht, aims to attract high-spending tourists travelling aboard cruise ships.
The cruise terminal project is expected to be approved by the PPP Committee either within this fiscal year or early in fiscal 2025, said Mr Tibordee.
The committee's consideration of any investment project involves a thorough review from multiple angles, rather than solely focusing on maximising profit, he said.
Factors such as environmental impact and the service charges for the public are taken into account. For example, the investment to expand the deep-sea port at Laem Chabang compares service charge proposals with Singapore, as excessively high charges could impact users, said Mr Tibordee.
Previously the committee approved adjusting the joint investment plan for 2020-2027 to align with the readiness of each project, ensuring it is up to date.
The plan now includes 135 projects valued at 1.19 trillion baht, up from 127 projects tallying 1.17 trillion baht.
A joint investment plan provides a clear framework for PPP projects and can help attract the private sector to co-invest in state projects, he said.
Mr Tibordee said the PPP Committee has accelerated various joint investment projects with high economic value, or those broadly affecting the public, such as rail, road and social projects, to make them operational and improve people's quality of life, providing convenient, fast public services and transport systems.