Asset Structure and Optimal Policy for Corporatization: the Case of Taiwan Railway Administration
Author: Wei-Hao Tseng
Abstract / Chinese PDF Download
Corporatization is one of the ways in which to bring about privatization inrestructuring state owned enterprises. In the case of Taiwan RailwayAdministration, although the railway administration authority shouldered publictransportation responsibility and huge debts, multi real estate was not effectivelydeveloped because of factors such as limitations from the railway act and theliquidation of public facilities and state-owned land. This article first discusseshow different formats of corporation policy affect the efficient utilization of assets.Asset structure theory is used to set up asset objective function. It can be seen thatthe handing over of all assets to the government could clean up historical debts andenhance social welfare and asset utilization. In other words, although someliterature maintains that the “infrastructure model” has potential for earningsaccumulation, based on the use of the Self-liquidation ratio to identify therelationship between asset structure and government regulation, the induction of“road model” could restructure asset/debt and subsidy. This would even create aricher property return, thus avoiding railway operation solely being thegovernment‘s financial burden.