Finance Ministry seeks new funds for rail link and two train sections
The Finance Ministry on Tuesday will ask for Cabinet approval of Bt1.86 billion in loans to function as cash flow for the Airport Rail Link operator.
It will also ask for Bt19.381 billion for construction of the Mor Chit-Sapan Mai part of the Green Line mass-transit system and Bt17.838 billion for the Baring-Samut Prakan part.
The ministry will propose to the Cabinet that it allow State Railway of Thailand (SRT) to seek domestic loans of Bt1.86 billion. The ministry will be the loan guarantor and SRT will lend the funds to SRT Electrified Train Co, which operates the airport rail link.
The ministry will also submit the projected impact of the planned Bt20 single price train ticket on all routes, which could affect the airport rail link.
The single price could cause SRT Electrified Train's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) to drop more than previously expected from next year to 2019. The company will also face a cash flow problem, as it has to repay loans to financial institutions for procuring a greater number of electric trains. It has to repay the loans starting in 2017 of Bt200 million a year. The company needs the cash flow of Bt1.86 billion from next year to 2017.
Currently, the airport rail link's city line has maximum capacity to serve 42,000 passengers daily versus the present number of 36,000. The reduction of its service fee to the planned single price will increase its passenger numbers, which could affect its service level, while it takes time for the company to procure additional trains to cater to more customers.
The ministry will also seek Cabinet approval for it to obtain domestic loans for lending to the Mass Rapid Transit Authority (MRTA) to fund the construction, including consultation fee, of the Dark Green Line mass-transit system, totalling Bt19.381 billion for the Mor Chit-Sapan Mai section and Bt17.838 billion for the Baring-Samut Prakan section.
