Bangkok subway deal signed

Bangkok subway deal signed

BANGKOK (AFP): Thai authorities have appointed a foreign-led
consortium to oversee the building of a long-awaited subway
system, a report said yesterday.

Bangkok's Metropolitan Rapid Transit Authority (MRTA) signed a
1.28 billion baht (US$26.7 million) consultancy contract with
U.S.-based Louis Berger International Inc. to oversee the
project, the Bangkok Post said.

Under the deal, the company will lead a consortium of seven
firms in supervising the construction of the northern section of
Bangkok's subway system, long touted as a solution to the Thai
capital's traffic woes.

The contract had been delayed for months due to negotiations
over additional costs resulting from the devaluation of the baht,
which has lost about 47 percent of its value since being floated
in July.

The entire cost of the construction of the lines for the two-
line network is expected to come to 52 billion baht (US$1.1
billion), according to the MRTA.