About several billion baht has been slashed from the suggested budget plans from the armed forces, according to an origin close to a House sub-committee vetting budget expenses for the 2023 fiscal year.
The sub-committee on durable goods, ICT, state enterprises and working capital has finished its examination of budget allocations which includes for the armed forces.
Of the total cut, about two billion was cut from the army’s proposed spending, 700 million baht from the atmosphere force’s proposed budget and the remaining cash from the navy’s funds.
Among the army schemes affected by the cut was your procurement of electric buses estimated from 300 million baht.
The particular sub-committee, chaired by Sorawut Nuengchamnong, a Palang Pracharath Celebration (PPRP) MP to get Chon Buri, mentioned the army’s missions involved long-distance journeys or heavy-duty jobs and the electric automobiles were unlikely to meet its requirements.
The remaining cut of 1. 7 billion dollars baht was regarding tied-over accounts including a helicopter procurement scheme, for which the terms of reference (ToR) have not yet been finalised.
As for the surroundings force, the budget reduce of 700 million baht is component of its plan to procure two F-35A fighter jets at a cost of 7. 4 billion baht from the US. Only about 700 million baht in the spending budget was requested in the 2023 fiscal calendar year, while the rest will be sought in later years.
The sub-committee said it decided to drop the air force’s request for funding because it did not receive any kind of confirmation as to whether or not the US Congress might approve the sale.
In the mean time, the navy’s cut of 200 mil baht was to get personnel training related to its submarine purchase scheme. The sub-committee cited an engine problem that could result in the scrapping of the deal as the reason behind the cut.
The navy gave China Shipbuilding & Offshore Worldwide Co (CSOC) two more months to honour its agreement to supply the navy blue with an S26T Yuan-class submarine with a German-made MTU396 diesel engine.
When CSOC cannot match the agreement by the new deadline, or by Aug 9, the navy would be forced to consider terminating the contract. Thailand obtained its first Yuan-class S26T submarine from China back in 2017 for 13. 5 billion baht.
According to the source, the sub-committee’s spending budget cuts are not final and they will be reviewed by the main House committee on August 2 .