The State Audit Office (SAO) has confirmed it has no plans to rebuild on the site of its headquarters in Bangkok, which collapsed on March 28 last year while under construction.
The confirmation came as the agency compiled more than 44,000 pages of documents for investigators examining the collapse.
Suttipong Boonnithi, deputy auditor-general and SAO spokesman, provided an update on the 33-storey headquarters project in Bangkok's Chatuchak district, which collapsed in March last year following tremors from an earthquake in Myanmar. The disaster killed at least 95 people.
Mr Suttipong said the project began in 2018, covering design, construction and supervision contracts worth more than 2.1 billion baht. However, it later encountered delays and serious engineering flaws.
Investigations by four engineering institutes found major deficiencies, including design and construction that failed to meet standards, inadequate shear wall strength, and structural joints that fell below legal requirements. These weaknesses were cited as key reasons the building could not withstand seismic vibrations.
In the legal process, prosecutors have filed charges against 23 suspects, including companies and individuals, for alleged wrongdoing in the building's design, supervision, and construction. The Department of Special Investigation is also pursuing additional cases related to violations of foreign business laws, while corruption-related matters have been forwarded to the National Anti-Corruption Commission.
Mr Suttipong said the SAO has already terminated contracts for both construction and supervision and is now seeking damages from contractors while coordinating with insurers for compensation. For the future, he said, there is no new construction project planned, and the budget for the original site has been suspended.
