Korean companies are well placed to win a water management and flood prevention project in Thailand worth W12 trillion (US$1=W1,088).

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs on Tuesday said a Korean consortium of consisting of the Korea Water Resources Corporation and domestic builders were selected among preliminary candidates in all 10 areas of the tender.

The consortium is bidding for the Thai government project to control the country's 25 rivers, including the Chao Phraya River that runs through Bangkok. The total cost of the project is equivalent to 15 percent of all overseas construction orders Korean builders won last year.

The Thai government is pursuing the massive plan through separate bids involving 10 different areas such as reservoirs, dams and sluiceways. The Korean consortium is composed of 10 big construction firms including Hyundai Engineering and Construction, Samsung Corporation, Daelim Industrial, Daewoo Engineering and Construction and SK Engineering.

Bangkok now awaits the final bids from the preliminary candidates and aims to announce the winners on April 10.