Shutting down
industrial projects at Map Ta Phut
will counteract fiscal
stimulus and economic recovery?
By Jon Fernquest 
Last
week industrial projects at one of Thailand's largest industrial
zones were
shut down after the administrative
court
handed down a landmark decision (Read article). Experts have been trying to assess the possible impact of the ruling on the Thai economy.
The negative impact of shutting down these industrial projects may exceed the positive economic impact from fiscal stimulus in the Thai Khem Kaeng (fiscal stimulus+investment) programme.
Today's article starts after the vocabulary:
shut down - stop
operation of a company or project
counteract - reduce the effect of something by doing something that has opposite effect
fiscal stimulus - temporary increase in government spending or tax cuts to get the economy growing again after a recession
economic recovery - when the economy gets better again after a recession
industrial zones - areas of the country where a lot of big factories are located
administrative court - a court that solves disputes concerning the exercise of public power and government administration (See court website, history of Thailand's administrative court and Wikipedia on administrative law)
landmark - very important (signals a new stage in development)
landmark decision - an important legal decision by a court (that signals that the law has changed)
assess the impact - try to determine or judge the effects of of an activity or project
the ruling - the decision made by a court of law in a legal case
Thai Khem Kaeng - the official name of the second stage of Thailand's fiscal stimulus programme to combat the global economic crisis (emphasizes investment projects that add value to the Thai economy)
counteract - reduce the effect of something by doing something that has opposite effect
fiscal stimulus - temporary increase in government spending or tax cuts to get the economy growing again after a recession
economic recovery - when the economy gets better again after a recession
industrial zones - areas of the country where a lot of big factories are located
administrative court - a court that solves disputes concerning the exercise of public power and government administration (See court website, history of Thailand's administrative court and Wikipedia on administrative law)
landmark - very important (signals a new stage in development)
landmark decision - an important legal decision by a court (that signals that the law has changed)
assess the impact - try to determine or judge the effects of of an activity or project
the ruling - the decision made by a court of law in a legal case
Thai Khem Kaeng - the official name of the second stage of Thailand's fiscal stimulus programme to combat the global economic crisis (emphasizes investment projects that add value to the Thai economy)
ECONOMIC GROWTH
Korn frets about Map Ta Phut fate
6/10/2009WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI
Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij is worried that the delay of big investments in the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate in Rayong could slow the economy by 0.4%.
The Administrative Court last week suspended construction permits for 76 projects in Map Ta Phut, where health and pollution concerns have been rising. At issue is the legal validity of the permits, and the environmental and health impact assessments for some of the projects.
Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate
- one of Thailand's largest industrial estates located in Rayong
(See interactive
map)
industrial estate, industrial park - a special area especially for factories with special facilities (roads, transportation, water, electricity, waste disposal) (See Wikipedia)
fret about Y - worry about Y
the fate of X - what will happen in the future to X
suspend (verb) - stop for a period of time (temporarily)
construction permits - official permission to build buildings
suspended construction permits - official permission to build stopped temporarily
concerns about Y - reasons why people worry about Y
validity - acceptable, acceptable by officials or just plain reasonable and sensible
legal validity - accepted by the law, accepted by legal authorities or officials
legal validity of the permits - permits are acceptable by the law and legal authorities
environmental and health impact assessments - the formal documents that look possible negative effects on health and environment of projects such as a factory or a new building or residence
industrial estate, industrial park - a special area especially for factories with special facilities (roads, transportation, water, electricity, waste disposal) (See Wikipedia)
fret about Y - worry about Y
the fate of X - what will happen in the future to X
suspend (verb) - stop for a period of time (temporarily)
construction permits - official permission to build buildings
suspended construction permits - official permission to build stopped temporarily
concerns about Y - reasons why people worry about Y
validity - acceptable, acceptable by officials or just plain reasonable and sensible
legal validity - accepted by the law, accepted by legal authorities or officials
legal validity of the permits - permits are acceptable by the law and legal authorities
environmental and health impact assessments - the formal documents that look possible negative effects on health and environment of projects such as a factory or a new building or residence
Mr Korn is concerned the ruling could affect Thai Khem Kaeng infrastructure investments as well. PTT Plc, the majority state-owned energy company, has plans to invest up to 100 billion baht in the area of Rayong province.
The government plans to appeal the decision. It is unclear when and how the suspension will end, adding to the confusion, he said.
"It is a big issue. If the massive investments by state enterprises including PTT are really halted, it will eventually slow economic growth next year by 0.4%," Mr Korn said from Turkey.
The budget for Thai Khem Kaeng this year and next year is 300 billion baht, and if disbursement reaches only 80%, the money circulated to the economic system will be between 2.7% and 2.8% of gross domestic product (GDP). The total budget for the programme from 2010-12 is 1.43 trillion baht...
majority state-owned
energy company - the government owns more than 50% of the
company
appeal the decision - a formal request to a higher court to review a legal decision and change it
suspension (noun) - stopping some activity for a period of time (temporarily)
confusion - a disorganized situation (people cannot understand and do not know what to do)
massive investments - very large investments
halted - stopped
appeal the decision - a formal request to a higher court to review a legal decision and change it
suspension (noun) - stopping some activity for a period of time (temporarily)
confusion - a disorganized situation (people cannot understand and do not know what to do)
massive investments - very large investments
halted - stopped
(Source: Korn frets about Map Ta Phut fate, 6/10/2009, WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI, link)
