Korn Defends Handling Of CAT-True Deals

[webfact]

Korn defends handling of CAT-True deals

By ACHARA DEBOONME

THE NATION

Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij yesterday defended his ministry for not pushing for open bidding of CAT Telecom's contracts with True group, saying they were not really new deals and were made with the public's best interest in mind.

"The contracts are based on the frequency having been granted to CAT long ago. Though True replaced Hutchinson Telecom, CAT still maintains the frequency's ownership. The authority [to see how to maximise the value] belongs to the ICT Ministry," Korn said.

"There was no open bidding as this is an existing project, based on the contract that CAT had with Hutchinson," he said in an interview with Nation Multimedia Group.

That is why the State Enterprise Policy Office did not press for open bidding, he said.

Other companies had tried to take over Hutch's business in Thailand, but True won, he said.

The government's policy is to prevent state enterprises investing in infrastructure projects, unless necessary.

Before signing the deal with True, CAT had abandoned its plan to take over Hutch's network itself and invest in the system upgrade.

True's purchase of the Hutch business was a private matter and this saved the government from spending its own funds, Korn said.

The deal is "a backup plan following the failed 3G auction" by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

TOT plans to establish its own third-generation wireless telecom network, but the government actually did not want the state enterprise to invest in the project. However, the government had to let it proceed after the failed 3G-licence auction, he said.

Last year, before the NTC's planned 3G auction in September, Korn played a pivotal role in promoting the so-called K2 plan to convert all telecom concessions into licences.

He said yesterday that the government wanted to create a level playing field for all companies with the conversion plan, while state enterprises could no longer rely on "economic rents".

Yet in the interview, he said that if the K2 plan were executed now, the result would be less fruitful.

-- The Nation 2011-02-15

[janverbeem]

Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij yesterday defended his ministry for not pushing for open bidding of CAT Telecom's contracts with True group, saying they were not really new deals and were made with the public's best interest in mind.<BR sab="367"><BR sab="368">

Wonder if he has a cousin with the name Public?

[Thai at Heart]

while state enterprises could no longer rely on "economic rents

14 bn was the number quoted in another thread I think. Oh what it is to be a landlord.

[hungryhippo]

The whole point of governments dictating who can use the spectrum is to prevent cross talk, but here we go again. Political whining from government officials about who gets what money without a single thought for the people.

I'd love to see them create this much talk over the light part of the spectrum, then perhaps everyone would realise how ridiculous it is to have this much talk over shining beams of light about.