Thailand: Delivery companies invest in facilities near new airport
Major express delivery companies are making huge investments at Suvarnabhumi Airport, which is expected to help make Thailand a new regional hub both for air travel and cargo, The Nation reports.
The opening of the airport, scheduled later this year, and bilateral open-sky pacts with neighbouring countries are the most important factors behind the push.
DHL predicts rapid expansion of its presence in Thailand after Suvarnabhumi Airport opens, with a plan to make its parcel and express service centre at the new airport six times larger than its existing facility at Don Muang airport. The new centre is part of DHL’s plans for expansion in the Asia-Pacific region with a total investment of US$1.4 billion (Bt57.3 billion). Investment in Thailand alone will amount to $15 million.
Scott Price, CEO of US-based DHL Express Asia Pacific, said the company’s operations in Thailand, India and Japan would grow to match increases in exports.
Singapore and Hong Kong are DHL’s regional hubs for Southeast Asia. Thailand has served as a hub for airport facilities, with express shipments from several locations, and being resorted and redistributed throughout the firm’s network.
Meanwhile, FedEx – also based in the United States – has launched its new world service centre on King Keaw Road, about 10 minutes from the new airport, to serve customers in areas east of Bangkok, including Pattaya, Chanthaburi and Rayong.
The new centre has five times more space than the earlier facilities and allows couriers to set out earlier. The centre has about 3,810 square metres of offices and warehousing and can sort up to 2,000 packages per hour. This is likely to be the biggest such centre to be built by an international express delivery company in the Kingdom.
Netherlands-based TNT, the other major international player, plans to spend up to Bt4 million in 2005-2006 on warehouses and delivery centres throughout Thailand, said country general manger Winfried Kiesbueye.
The biggest expenditure will be on its new warehouse at Suvarnabhumi, while the remaining investment will be on depots and domestic stations. TNT’s Thai unit expects 15-per-cent growth in its international services and 25-per-cent growth in its domestic delivery and logistics services.
