Big-money port plan set to be drafted

The Port Authority of Thailand (PAT) will conduct research on Bangkok Port renovations in the coming fiscal year.

The renovation project is now undergoing a detailed design review, said PAT Director General Kriengkrai Chaisiriwongsuk yesterday.

Bangkok Port is located in Klong Toey district.

The PAT hopes to present a final draft of the project, featuring the results of the current study, to the Ministry of Transport and the cabinet before December this year.

“The review is going to use at least 70 million baht of the 2023 fiscal-year budget, and it is expected that it will be completed before 2024,” said Mr Kriengkrai.

He said that the review will focus on aspects related to developing the community in the surrounding into a modern port area with both a new shopping centre and distribution centre.

Mr Kriengkrai said the PAT planned to inform the estimated 13,000 local people of their development plan, which forms the cornerstone of its 900-rai Bangkok Port Centre project.

It is going to upgrade the port into a terminal and shipment hub, which is expected to serve as an expansion of Thailand’s logistics investment opportunities portfolio, according to Mr Kriengkrai.

The port’s capacity is going to be expanded from 1.43 million twenty-foot (6-metre) equivalent units (TEU) to 1.8 million TEU, aiming to support more efficient logistics transportation.

The redevelopment of the port will also see it become the key terminal for nautical services offered by and through the PAT’s various business partnerships and sub-divisions, according to Mr Kriengkrai.