Bangkok Post
February 26, 2003

Original plans could be dragged off shelf; two small plants and B20bn white elephant.

The original design for the troubled Klong Dan wastewater treatment project in Samut Prakan could be resurrected, which would involve building two smaller plants.

Officials said Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday proposed that two other treatment plants be built in Phra Pradaeng and Bang Pu.

Some use could still be made of the Klong Dan facility, which is already 95% complete, they said.

The Kong Dan project was flawed because it had been built without an expert overseeing the construction of the facility as originally demanded in the contract, Mr Thaksin had concluded.

More than 20 billion baht has already been paid to the contractors, NVPSKG consortium. The Special Investigation Department of the Justice Ministry would investigate why the project was allowed to proceed, officials said.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Praphat Panyachartrak said an on-going probe had already implicated a few people in irregularities, but declined to name them.

At least three politicians have allegedly benefitted from the project, but the only action has been against the former director-general of the Pollution Control Department, Sirithan
Pairoj-Boriboon, who was transferred to an inactive post in the PM’s Office.