Bangkok Metro plans to raise about US$158M from an initial public offering after filing its application with Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
The commission will make a decision on the planned listing by the end of September. If it proceeds, cash from the offering will be used to buy additional metro cars.
Also, the Thai government, through the finance ministry, is planning to create a new holding company by November that will oversee construction of new mass transit lines in Bangkok. The company will have a registered capital of US$73M.
Moves to form the company come as the finance ministry estimated it would cost Baht US$13.5bn to extend the mainly underground mass transit system by another 291km in Bangkok and nearby provinces.
