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MOTC denies considering further South Korean bids

The Ministry of Transportation and Communications denied reports yesterday that it was considering allowing the South Korean manufacturer of flawed PP-model railroad cars to participate in future Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) tenders.

"If the ministry was trying to appease the South Korean company, the case would have been settled a long time ago and there would be no need to go through all this trouble now," said Vice Minister of Transportation and Communications Ho Nuan-shuan (何煖軒), who is also the acting chief of the TRA.

Ho noted that former minister of transportation and communications Lin Ling-san (林陵三) made the decision to ban all South Korean contractors from participating in TRA tenders after the manufacturer of 400 PP-model railroad cars found to have flaws proved reluctant to fix them.

Both sides have attempted to resolve the conflict, and the Korean company proposed setting aside US$3 million as a warranty and drawing up a detailed maintenance plan.

The administration, however, rejected the offer.

A high-ranking ministry official was quoted as saying that the South Korean firm had attempted to use the influence of the South Korean Trade Office in Taipei to sway Minister of Transportation and Communications Kuo Yao-chi (郭瑤琪) on the issue.

Kuo had chastised the company for the losses the TRA had incurred on the deal.

The TRA estimated that the cars' frequent breakdowns had cost it NT$1.9 billion.
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