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The Nation newspaper, citing a PTT study submitted to the Energy Ministry and the Cabinet, said, “The cost of shipping oil via the bridge would be US$0.31 to US$0.33 a barrel higher than transporting the same load in ships of 300,000 tonnes and larger using the strait.”
“The project would [also] require shipping a minimum of 1.5 million barrels of oil per day, as well as an investment of US$881 million to build an oil pipeline, depots and loading facilities on both the west and east coasts,” added the paper.
However the Government appears determined to follow the plan with Energy Ministry deputy permanent secretary Pornchai Rujiprapha saying he will pursue South Korean, Chinese and Japanese investors to jointly invest in the project to help improve energy security and avert shipping risks.
“The Ministry [also] advised the Cabinet on July 16 to build an oil refinery with a capacity of 500,000 barrels per day by 2012 to make the land bridge competitive,” said Rujiprapha.
