Bestlin Group is set to move 83 natural gas vehicle (NGV) buses parked inside the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand's (MRTA) maintenance centre this week, to make way for the construction of the new MRT Orange Line's maintenance depot.
The buses have been parked in the centre, in Huai Khwang, since mid-December last year.
They were part of a failed deal between the company and the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) to supply 489 NGV buses in a 3.3-billion-baht procurement agreement.
The ownership status of the delivered buses has been in a state of limbo since the deal failed in April, after the Customs Department suspected Bestlin of dodging import taxes.
Bestlin chairman Kanit Sriwatcharaprapa said Tuesday authorities will move the buses to a different spot within the MRTA's maintenance centre.
"The NGV buses will be moved a few hundred metres from where they were originally parked, until the court decides whether they belong to us or the BMTA," he said.
The MRTA had earlier filed a complaint to the Central Administrative Court demanding Bestlin remove the buses as they would obstruct the construction of the MRT Orange Line depot.
MRTA acting governor Rithika Suparat said contractors so far have been building the new depot around the buses.
The matter was passed on to the Civil Court which ruled in favour of the MRTA, stating Bestlin must remove the buses within three days of Feb 28.
However, Mr Kanit said Tuesday more than 10 of the 83 buses were found to have been damaged while they were parked at the centre, with parts and other equipment also reportedly having been stolen.
"Inspections by our mechanics revealed some of the buses' batteries were missing, and some mirrors on the vehicles have been broken," he said.
"If the court determines the buses belong to the BMTA, we reserve the right to charge them for any expenses [of fixing the buses prior to moving them] which we incur, accordingly."
Mr Kanit added that an official verdict on the ownership of the buses "would not take long, as the investigation was concluded at the end of February."
