21 May 2008
) Information Memorandum : TTW(Amendment in Statistical Table)
Sponsor Support Agreement between the Company and a syndicate of lenders of that subsidiary.
Risk Factors
1. Risks relating to agreements governing the Company's operations
1.1 Risks relating to termination of Water Purchase and Sale Agreement(s)
Water Purchase and Sale Agreement No. 189/2543 between the Company and PWA and Water Purchase
and Sale Agreement No. For Gor Mor 7/2549 between Pathum Thani Water and PWA may be interpreted
as not complying with the procedure prescribed by the Act on Private Sector Participation in State
Undertaking, B.E. 2535 (1992) (the Private Sector Participation Act).
(a) Water Purchase and Sale Agreement No. 189/2543 between the Company and PWA
In 1997, the Council of State gave an opinion that PWA's project, in which a private entity would be
permitted to invest in the construction of the entire water production system and PWA would
purchase the water from that private entity and then distribute it to the community, did not fall
within the scope of application of the Private Sector Participation Act. The Council of State
considered that, since the private entity producing and selling water to PWA was responsible for its
own profit and loss results and PWA was neither involved in such results, nor has it transferred its
rights under the law to the private entity but merely assisted the private entity in finding the source
of raw water and the private entity then purchased raw water from the owner itself, the undertaking
under consideration was a wholly private undertaking. Moreover, the use of the raw water source
by the private entity for its tap water production did not require grant of concession or right to use
natural resources or state property. The purchase of water produced by the private entity was an
entry into a sale and purchase agreement in a normal business. Therefore, the Water Purchase and
Sale Agreement in question was not proposed by PWA to the Cabinet for consideration and approval
in accordance with the procedure under the Private Sector Participation Act.
The Company cannot assure that the Cabinet will not instruct the Office of the Council of State to
reconsider the legal issue concerning the compliance or otherwise of the Water Purchase and Sale
Agreement with the procedure prescribed in the Private Sector Participation Act. If the matter is to
be reconsidered, there can be no assurance that the opinion reached will be the same as that
previously given. If there is a change of opinion, the validity of the Water Purchase and Sale
Agreement might be affected, which could have a material adverse effect on the Company's
business, revenue and financial condition due to the fact that PWA is the Company's sole customer.
Therefore, if that situation arises and the Company wishes to continue selling water, the Company
would have to find new customers and the conditions in the concession must be amended to make
them correspond with the new water purchase and sale agreement.
(b) Water Purchase and Sale Agreement No. For Gor Mor 7/2549 between Pathum Thani Water and
PWA.
The Company cannot assure that there will not be a cost overrun above the estimated project value
of Baht 897-984 million after the construction under this Agreement is completed. The contract for
the construction of the water distribution system is a turnkey contract under which the constructor is
responsible for the increased costs of construction materials, except where the higher costs of
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construction are due to amendments to the design and scope of work. In this connection, if the
project value becomes higher than Baht 1,000 million, the question may arise as to whether Pathum
Thani Water's Water Purchase and Sale Agreement constitutes a contract which must comply with
the procedure prescribed by the Private Sector Participation Act. In this regard, if the Agreement is
considered to have been entered into in order to avoid the application of the Private Sector
Participation Act, the Agreement may be revoked, which would materially affect the Company's
results of operations, financial condition and future revenue. Nevertheless, the Company believes
that if Pathum Thani Water can prove that the increase of the project value in excess of Baht 1,000
million is due to external and subsequent factors, the Agreement would not be considered as having
been entered into to avoid the application of the Private Sector Participation Act.
1.2 Risks relating to the unequal term of the Concession and the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement
between the Company and PWA
While the term of the waterworks business concession granted to the Company by the Concession
Grantor is 25 years (ending on 10 March 2030), the term of the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement No.
189/2543 between the Company and PWA is 30 years (ending on 20 July 2034). The Company cannot
assure that it will be granted an extension of the concession period or that it will know the Concession
Grantor's decision before the concession period ends. If the Company fails to obtain an extension of the
concession period during the period between the two different end dates, the Company may become the
defaulting party under the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement due to its inability to produce and
distribute tap water to PWA. This would have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of
operations, revenue and financial condition.
In addition, even if an extension of the Concession is granted, the period for which the Company may
operate the waterworks business may not be equal to the period for which it may sell tap water to PWA
under the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement. Moreover, although the Water Purchase and Sale
Agreement contains a provision allowing the Company to request an extension of the Agreement, which
must be agreed upon by both parties, the Company cannot assure that the extension would be under
the same terms as those contained in the expired Agreement or whether the terms would be materially
different. If the Agreement is not renewed and the Company has to find a new buyer, the Company
may have to incur increased costs due to the need to invest in new equipment suitable for the new
buyer, which could affect the Company's results of operations, revenue and financial condition.
1.3 Risks relating to the inability to comply with the conditions as specified in the Water Production and
Distribution License Agreement, dated 31 August 1995 (the Licence Agreement)
The Licence Agreement between Pathum Thani Water and PWA contains a provision requiring Pathum
Thani Water to ensure that its water production system at the water distribution station has adequate
production capacity to supply the MOQ to be purchased plus 30% thereof at all times from the day it
begins operation. If the MOQ as determined by PWA plus 30% thereof is more than the maximum
production capacity of Pathum Thani Water (the maximum installed production capacity of the water
production system of Pathum Thani Water is 288,000 cubic metres per day), PWA and Pathum Thani
Water must negotiate a revision of the scope of work under the Licence Agreement, to be made in
writing, to enable Pathum Thani Water to comply with the requirement first. If the parties cannot agree,
PWA may consider that the condition regarding the adequacy of the production capacity as stipulated in
the License Agreement has not been satisfied. If the right to terminate is exercised, it would have a
material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations, business, revenue and financial
condition. Nevertheless, Pathum Thani Water believes that PWA was aware of its maximum production
capacity from the time of negotiation until the day that the Licence Agreement was entered into. Thus,
the MOQ plus 30% thereof stipulated in the License Agreement should not be higher than Pathum Thani
Water's maximum production capacity until an amendment is agreed upon in writing.
1.4 Risks relating to termination of the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement(s) and/or the Licence
Agreement
The Water Purchase and Sale Agreement(s) and/or License Agreement of the Company and Pathum
Thani Water may be terminated if any of the events specified in such agreements occur. To exercise
the right to terminate the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement and/or the Licence Agreement, PWA
must serve a written notice to allow the Company and/or Pathum Thani Water to remedy the breach
within a specified period first. Only if the Company and/or Pathum Thani Water fail to remedy the
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default within the specified period, PWA will be entitled to exercise the termination right. However, if
PWA exercises its right to terminate the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement and/or the License
Agreement, PWA may seize the security which the Company and/or Pathum Thani Water have placed
with it. Moreover, PWA is entitled to claim damages or reimbursement of any expenses incurred as a
result of the breach of the relevant agreement. This could have a material adverse effect on the
business and financial condition of the Company and Pathum Thani Water.
2. Risks relating to the waterworks business concession(s)
2.1 Risks relating to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment's refusal to renew existing
concessions or grant a new concession requested for the expansion of the service area or the increase
of production capacity
The decision on whether to renew the concession or grant a new concession for the expansion of the
service area or the increase of production capacity rests in the sole discretion of the Concession Grantor.
Due to a number of factors, therefore, the Company cannot assure whether it and Pathum Thani Water
would be granted an extension of the current concessions or a new concession for the abovementioned
purposes. Even if the Company and Pathum Thani Water were granted an extension of the current
concessions or a new concession, the Company cannot assure that the conditions of the concessions
would remain unchanged or that there will not be additional terms or conditions, which may have a
material adverse effect on the ability of the Company and Pathum Thani Water to operate a waterworks
business, their revenue and business prospects.
2.2 Risks relating to the terms of the Concessions which may affect the Company's Operations.
(1) After half of the concession period has elapsed, the Concession Grantor may exercise its right to
revoke the Concession if the Government or a local administration wishes to purchase the entire
waterworks operations of the Company and/or Pathum Thani Water. In that event, the Company
and/or Pathum Thani Water will not be able to operate their waterworks business until the end of
the concession term and to achieve the projected return on investment. This could have a material
adverse effect on the results of operations, revenue and financial condition of the Company and
Pathum Thani Water.
Furthermore, although the Concession provides for a buyback at a market price, the Company and
Pathum Thani Water cannot assure that the designated buyback price would cover the capital
investment that the Company has invested in the waterworks business and other benefits that the
Company and Pathum Thani Water would have received had they been able to continue their
operations until the end of the concession term.
(2) The Company and Pathum Thani Water risk being ordered by the Concession Grantor to change the
water charge rate at the end of the 3-year period from the signing of the Concession if a local
administration or a consumer requests the Concession Grantor to change the water charge rate or
the method of calculation of water charge. In this regard, the Concession Grantor has a discretion
to consider such request and if it is satisfied that a change of the water charge rate or the method
of calculation of water charge is appropriate due to the fact that the circumstances on which the
determination of the water charge rate or the water charge calculation method was based have
changed, then the Concession Grantor has the power to issue an order in writing to change the
water charge rate or the method of calculation of water charge to what the Concession Grantor
deems fair and appropriate. The Company and Pathum Thani Water must comply with such order,
which could seriously affect the operations, revenue and financial condition of the Company and
Pathum Thani Water. Nevertheless, the Company is of the view that the change to the water
charge rate is unlikely, as the Company and Pathum Thani Water do not provide services to any
local administration or consumers but to PWA exclusively.
(3) If the Government or a local administration wishes to build or expand any road or public place or if a
private entity requests that any equipment obstructing the entrance to his/her house or land be
removed, whether such road was existed before or was constructed after the installation of the
equipment, and the Government or local administration approves such request, the Company and
Pathum Thani Water must remove the equipment located in the public place and obstructing the
construction or expansion or obstructing the entrance as requested by the Government or the
relevant local administration without claiming compensation. If such order is an order to relocate
the bulk transmission main pipeline, the Company and Pathum Thani Water may have to incur the
cost of relocating the bulk transmission main pipeline without any compensation. However, the
Company may be reimbursed by PWA under the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement if the capital
expenditures or operating expenses increase to more than Baht 1 million through no fault of the
Company. On the other hand, Pathum Thani Water may not request reimbursement from PWA, as
the Licence Agreement between PWA and Pathum Thani Water does not contain a similar term.
This could therefore affect Pathum Thani Water's revenue and business prospects.
2.3 Risks relating to revocation of the Concessions
The Concession Grantor may revoke the Concessions on any of the following grounds:
(1) The Company and Pathum Thani Water fail to distribute tap water for more than 3 days unless this
is caused by an event of force majeure.
(2) The Company and Pathum Thani Water fail to comply with any rules or any terms of the
Concessions for one month or more and the Concession Grantor has given a written notice at least
15 days before issuing an order revoking the Concessions.
(3) The water production plant, equipment or any substantial part of the waterworks operations are
seized by a court judgement.
If the Concession Grantor revokes the Concessions, the Company and Pathum Thani Water will not be
able to continue to produce and distribute tap water, which will have a material adverse effect on the
Company's operations, revenue and financial condition.
3. Risks relating to the business operation
3.1 Risks relating to being refused permission to use areas currently used for laying the bulk transmission
mains
The Company cannot assure that each of the relevant authorities supervising the areas where the bulk
transmission mains and local distribution networks of the Company are located or pass through will
demand the fee for using the areas at a reasonable rate. Moreover, the Company cannot give an
assurance that those authorities will not allow other parties to use such areas or construct any structures
over the bulk transmission mains, which may damage them or obstruct their reparations. Therefore, if
the Company and Pathum Thani Water are unable to use the areas to lay the bulk transmission mains,
or are required to pay a high rate of fee for using the areas, or are unable to access the area to repair
the bulk transmission mains in a timely manner, the Company's and Pathum Thani Water's business,
financial condition, results of operations and business prospects could be adversely affected.
3.2 Risks relating to raw water sources
(a) Ability to pump water from raw water sources for the production of tap water
Pathum Thani Water has been pumping water from the Chao Phraya River beyond the amount
approved by the Office of the National Water Resources Commission since September 2006 and will
stop pumping water beyond the approved amount when its new production plant becomes
operational. At present, there is no authority empowered to make a claim of wrongdoing due to the
absence of any relevant laws. Furthermore, the Rules of the Office of the Prime Minister governing
the Management of National Water Resources, B.E. 2550 (2007), which make references to the
power and responsibilities of the National Water Resources Commission and the River Basin
Commission, do not contain any provision on the power to make a claim against those who do not
comply with the conditions of a permission to pump water. Notwithstanding this, the Company
cannot assure that the Office of the National Water Resources Commission will not ask for co-
operation from the authorities which have the power to control Pathum Thani Water's operations to
order it to stop pumping water beyond the permitted limit, which would have an adverse effect on
its revenue and results of operations.
(b) Adequacy of raw water sources and search for reserve water sources
The volume of raw water in the water sources depends on several factors beyond the Company's
control. At present the Company and Pathum Thani Water have not proceeded to procure any
reserve water sources to replace the current raw water sources due to the high investment cost
involved in building a reserve water source system. Although the Water Purchase and Sale
Agreement between the Company and PWA stipulates that PWA agrees to reimburse the Company if
the Company is unable to produce enough water to meet the MOQ due to its inability to find other
sources of water of comparable quality to that of the current sources, the Company cannot assure
that the supply of raw water from such sources will be adequate for use by the Company and
Pathum Thani Water to produce tap water in accordance with their current production capacity or
the production capacity that may be increased in the future. Nor can it assure that the Company
and Pathum Thani Water will be able to find other water sources as alternative sources for their tap
water production. This would have a material adverse effect on the business, results of operations
and business prospects of the Company and Pathum Thani Water.
(c) Costs of raw water charges
Although the Company or Pathum Thani Water do not currently have any expenses for the pumping
of raw water from these two water sources. The Company cannot assure that a new law will not be
enacted in the future to impose and collect rates for use of water pumped from the natural raw
water sources and whether there would be an impact on the cost of tap water production for the
Company and Pathum Thani Water. However, the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement has a term
which provides that if a fee is collected for the use of raw water, which increases the production cost
of the Company and Pathum Thani Water, the Company will be able to request reimbursement of
the whole amount paid in respect thereof. However, Pathum Thani Water may adjust its water
charge rates in line with the increased costs only after there is an agreement, failing which the
matter shall be resolved through the dispute resolution proceedings. Thus, if any government
authority collects the fee for the use of raw water and PWA and Pathum Thani Water fail to reach an
agreement, Pathum Thani Water's business, financial condition, results of operations and business
prospects may be adversely affected.
(d) Quality of raw water
One of the major costs of tap water production is the cost of chemicals, which varies according to
the quality of raw water. The Company cannot assure that the quality of the raw water sources of
the Company and Pathum Thani Water will remain suitable for use in the tap water production. If
the quality of raw water from these sources falls below the standard, the quantity of chemicals used
to improve their quality will increase. This would mean higher cost for both the Company and
Pathum Thani Water, which could have an adverse effect on the business, financial condition and
result of operations of Pathum Thani Water. Under the Water Purchase and Sale Agreement, the
Company is entitled to request reimbursement from PWA for the increased costs. However, if PWA
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