The Thai-Chinese high-speed rail project has missed the cabinet's traveling meeting in the Northeast due to unresolved specification issues related to the 40 billion baht system contract. It has been revealed that China has not provided detailed information, making it impossible to compare prices. The Ministry of Transport has rejected China's proposal to guarantee the high-speed service for only one year, stating that the timeframe is too short and does not align with the value of the goods.

          Mr. Chaiwat Thongkum, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, disclosed the progress of the high-speed rail project between Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima. The ministry is currently finalizing the details of contract 2.3, which covers rail systems, electrical systems, and mechanical systems, as well as the procurement of train sets and training of personnel. The budget for this is 40 billion baht, but several issues remain unresolved, including waiting for the Chinese side to send back detailed information. Therefore, it is not yet possible to present the draft contract to the cabinet meeting scheduled to take place in Bueng Kan and Nong Khai provinces on December 12-13.

          The ministry aims to finalize the details for approval by January before signing the contract at the joint committee meeting for railway cooperation between Thailand and China, which will be held on January 25 in Beijing.

          Mr. Chaiwat further explained that the issues with contract 2.3 relate to the specifications of the design and the value of the contract (BOQ). The Chinese side has provided a lump sum figure for costs in each section but has not clarified the detailed breakdown for each item. This makes it difficult to compare the prices of the specifications proposed by China with those of general market products. Additionally, this may conflict with Thailand's public procurement laws, which require detailed cost explanations for project transparency.

          Nonetheless, it is crucial to finalize the contract soon, as the trains take up to six years to manufacture and will be imported piece by piece to meet the operational deadline in 2022-2023. However, the price cannot be finalized yet because the Chinese state-owned enterprise, which is the contracting party, cannot produce the trains itself and must bid for private Chinese companies to manufacture them.

          Furthermore, there is the issue of the warranty for the high-speed trains, which China has only offered for one year. The Ministry of Transport considers this inadequate, given that it is a high-tech product with significant value. Therefore, it should come with a warranty according to international standards, which should be at least two years or more. Meanwhile, the construction contracts will be expedited to complete all 14 contracts, valued at approximately 120 billion baht, within the first quarter of 2022.

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