In a related development, Porter is in negotiations with Thailand’s government to undertake a competitiveness study. The Bangkok Post reported on Tuesday that the Thai government was hiring Porter for 50 million baht ($1.3 million).
Lyn Pohl, an assistant to Porter, disputed that the deal had been finalized, but confirmed that one might be in the offing.
“We’re still talking to them about it—we haven’t come to any agreement,” she said.
In a later email she wrote that Porter was in discussions with the Thais, but that “there was no agreement to go forward.”
She said that the proposals were confidential but would say that the figures quoted in the article were inaccurate.
Porter could not be reached for comment on either the Bangkok deal or the ISC.
—Staff writer David H. Gellis can be reached at gellis@fas.harvard.edu.