Contractor Stecon wants 370 more days
NAREERAT WIRIYAPONG
The contractor for Bangkok's Airport Link is seeking a one-year extension to complete the 26-billion-baht project, blaming slow land transfers from the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). The delay is subject to approval by the SRT board on May 26, according to Sino-Thai Engineering & Construction Plc (Stecon), which leads the consortium building the rail line to Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Tawatchai Sintoplertchaiyakul, Stecon's project manager for the Airport Link, said the company would need an additional 370 days to complete civil works, followed by 90 days to integrate all systems.
The previous government had earlier approved a 180-day extension for the contractor to complete the project by Feb 4 this year.
So far, construction of the rail link is about 84% complete, Mr Tawatchai said.
''We need more time to get the civil works done because of the delayed land transfers,'' he said.
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| Construction is advancing steadily but problems with land transfers have delayed the 26-billion-baht megaproject. — APICHART JINAKUL |
Parcels of land along a 1.2-kilometre stretch between the route's Phaya Thai and Ratchaprarop stations were transferred to the contractor 22 months behind the original schedule, he added.
Stecon and B. Grimm were awarded the civil works contract worth 12.3 billion baht for the 28-kilometre route from Phaya Thai to the airport. Another consortium partner, Siemens AG, has a 13.6-billion-baht contract to develop tracking and signalling systems and supply train carriages.
Construction started in mid-2005. Prior to the extension, the rail link was scheduled to be transferred to SRT in November of this year, he said.
While admitting the cause of the delays, SRT spokesman Watcharachan Sirisuwannatash said the agency's board would consider the extension of the contract based on existing information.
After construction is completed, the project would require another six to seven months of testing and project commissioning. Tentatively, the rail link is expected to start service in December 2009, Mr Watcharachan said.
The Airport Link would offer two types of service on parallel rails with the City Line stopping at every station to transport passengers from Phaya Thai to Suvarnabhumi in 30 minutes. The non-stop Airport Express would run from Makkasan to the airport in 15 minutes.
The train would have a maximum speed of 160 kilometres per hour.
Mr Watcharachan added that the board on May 26 would also consider an investment of about 90 million baht to connect the Airport Link with the Phetchaburi subway station and the Phaya Thai BTS station. The resolution is subject to final approval from the cabinet.
Mr Tawatchai said the delays had forced the builders to shoulder rising costs of construction materials, especially steel. Costs are also expected to rise with increases in the minimum wage next month.
SET-listed Stecon posted a net profit of 21.67 million baht in 2007 against a loss of 1.77 billion a year earlier when the company booked all losses stemming from construction of long-term projects including the Airport Link. Total revenue increased from 14.8 billion baht in 2006 to 17.47 billion baht last year.
CIMB-GK Securities (Thailand) said that high steel prices had put pressure on Stecon's results.
Steel prices went up 18% year-on-year in the last quarter of 2007 and another 34% in January. Cement and steel prices are expected to rise 10% in 2008, and CIMB has cut its earnings forecast for Stecon by 60% this year.
Stecon shares (STEC) closed at 4.88 baht yesterday, down 0.81%, in trade worth 22.89 million baht.
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