Thailand To Go Ahead With USD$1.9 Bln Airport Expansion

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Thailand To Go Ahead With USD$1.9 Bln Airport Expansion
October 6, 2014

Thailand's military government is go ahead with a THB62 billion baht (USD$1.9 billion) expansion plan at Bangkok's main Suvarnabhumi airport.

Thailand will also build a third runway worth THB19 billion baht at the airport and plans to build another three provincial airports, transport minister Air Chief Marshal Prajin Juntong told reporters.

"The second-phase expansion of Suvarnabhumi airport will have to be done quickly to meet increasing numbers of tourists," he said.

A committee will be set up to look into project details before presenting them to cabinet for approval, he added.

On September 29, Airports of Thailand, the country's largest airport operator, said it planned to spend THB54 billion baht on expanding capacity at Suvarnabhumi, down from an earlier announced budget of THB62 billion baht. The plan is subject to approval from the transport ministry.

The airport operator said previously the expansion over the next five years would increase capacity at the airport to 80 million a year by 2017.

Suvarnabhumi airport, which opened in 2006 on what was once flooded marshland known as "cobra swamp", has the capacity to serve about 45 million passengers a year, but actually handled around 50 million last year.

news.airwise.com

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Background

Plans to build third runway, domestic passenger terminal at Suvarnabhumi Airport to be submitted to cabinet
2009-08-23

BANGKOK: -- The Airports of Thailand Public Co., Ltd. (AoT) plans to submit its plans to construct third runway and a domestic passenger terminal building at Suvarnabhumi Airport to a Cabinet meeting this October, said AoT President Serirat Prasutanond.

If approved by the Cabinet, both plans which will be financed by AoT of about Bt10 billion could be completed within three years, said Mr. Serirat.

He said designs for the domestic passenger terminal building are now completed while concerned officials are now studying environmental impact report, submitted by Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning.

Initially, it was determined that a third runway, if built, would in effect reduce the impact of noise on people living near the airport, because it would spread noise pollution over a wider area and reduce the number of landings and departures per runway, he explained.

Construction of the third runway will not hamper services provided at the first and second runways, he added.


-- TNA 2009-08-23


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Suvarnabhumi expansion budget trimmed
25 March 2010

State-owned Airports of Thailand said that its board has revised downward the investment budget for the expansion of Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport, terminating its plan to build a new domestic terminal building and a third runway, Dow Jones reported.

Under the revised budget, the company plans to invest US$1.9 billion in the 2011-2016 fiscal years, down from US$2.4 billion set previously.

The airport operator plans to finance half the investment through offshore funding, possibly via loans from Japan International Cooperation Agency, and the remainder from domestic funding.

cargonewsasia.com

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Bangkok's struggling airport to get $1.9 billion upgrade
June 1, 2012

Airports of Thailand Pcl (AOT) is to spend Suvarnabhumi about $1.9 billion over the next five years to expand capacity at Bangkok's overcrowded airport by a third, its president said on Wednesday.

AOT, which runs the country's six main airports, aims to boost capacity at Suvarnabhumi by 15 million to serve up to 60 million passengers in 2017, Anirut Thanomkulbutra told reporters.

The $4 billion airport, which opened in September 2006 on what was once flooded marshland known as "cobra swamp", is expected to serve about 51 million passengers in AOT's fiscal year ending in September 2012, up from 48 million a year earlier and above annual capacity put at 45 million now, Anirut said.

Construction is due to begin in 2015. Some 80 per cent of the budget will come from AOT's cash and the remaining 20 per cent from a domestic loan, he said, adding it had hired ECM Consortium to manage the expansion.

Bangkok's old Don Muang airport, which these days is used by private planes, budget airlines and freight carriers, will take some of the strain from July 2012 when some scheduled commercial operations will move back there, Anirut said.

"Don Muang will be opened in July and serve both domestic and international airlines and we aim to have about 8 million passengers a year," he said.

The airport operator made a net profit of 2.99 billion baht ($A9.7 million) in the second quarter ending March 31, up more than two-thirds from a year earlier, thanks to the growing number of developing-world travellers and growth in low-cost air travel.

Passenger numbers to Thailand through its six airports are expected to reach 70 million this fiscal year, up from 66 million last year, Anirut said.

Read more: Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok to get $1.9 billion upgrade