PTT admits it may have to pay fine

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PTT admits it may have to pay fine
Egat also 'not likely to finish plant on time'

Chakrit Ridmontri

Feb. 16, 1998
Bangkok Post

The Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) admitted yesterday
it may have to pay a hefty fine to Burma if opponents of the gas
pipeline project keep up with their protest.

Piti Timprasert, director of the project, said yesterday that the
Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) may not be
able to finish building a gas power plant by the date that the
supplier would deliver gas from Burma's Yadana field to PTT.

As a result, he added, PTT is liable to the fine set at US$20
million plus US$2.5 million interest loan if the pipeline was
delayed for three months.

"I was told that Egat would finish building the plant in November," said Mr
Piti, adding Egat's board of executives would discuss the matter today.

Jirapon Sinthunawa, a panellist and energy lecturer at Mahidol University,
said Egat was unable to finish building the plant due to its mounting debt
although it declared through the media many times that the plant would be
completed by November. Mr Jiraporn said PTT had never taken the possibility
of the delay into account.

Even if the plant was built on time, he said Egat would have no one to buy
the electricity produced from the gas provided by the PTT.

Mr Jirapon also added that PTT misled the public in saying that the plant
would be built on time. The opponents' attempt to block the pipeline
construction would force PTT to feed the plant with diesel fuel instead, he
said.

PTT officials in charge of the project have been asked to provide
information to the panel chaired by former prime minister Anand Panyarachun.

The panel, appointed by Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai last week, would spend
10 days, starting on Saturday, to sort out differences of the project's
details and arrive at a conclusion based on the information from both
sides. The conclusion will be passed on to the premier.

PTT is likely to disclose new information to the panel in the second day of
the hearing.

PTT's Manoon Sirisaengsubsin said it was not necessary to take gas delivery
on July 1, but it could begin on August 1. Previously, PTT demanded the
opponents to stop obstructing the pipeline laying because it claimed that
it had to finish the project by July 1, or else it would be liable to a
daily fine initially set at 60 million baht.

Pibhop Dhongchai, core leader of conservation groups, heaped blame on PTT
for distorting the fact and disclosing to the public only information
useful to its side.

"If the country is liable to such a big fine due to various failures caused
by PTT and Egat, so who are really destroying the country?" asked Mr
Pibhop, adding PTT always claimed that the opponents have been obstructing
national development.