AOT to lose 143 million baht/month from scrapping duty-free shops
The organisation looks to other ways to generate revenue once the duty-free shops in arrivals close permanently
Airports of Thailand (AOT) stands to lose 143.32 million baht per month in rental and other revenues from August 1 after closing all duty-free shops in the arrivals areas of five Thai airports, the agency announced during its board meeting on Tuesday.
The move to close duty-free shops was approved by the Cabinet on July 2 in a bid to boost spending in domestic shops, aiming to generate up to 350 billion baht annually. The measure will take effect from August 1.
The airports under AOT’s administration where duty-free shops will be scrapped are Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Hat Yai.
The AOT board meeting on Tuesday acknowledged that the closure of duty free shops at these airports will deprive AOT of 143.32 million baht in monthly revenue. This amount comprises rental revenue at 1.7 million baht per month and a minimum profit compensation of 141.62 million baht per month.
The meeting also reported that King Power Duty Free Ltd (KPD), one of the largest duty-free operators, has contacted the AOT to return duty-free shop areas in the five airports totalling 2,250.6 square metres, effective August 1.
AOT had earlier announced that it was looking into new projects to help increase its commercial profits to compensate for the lost revenue from the closures.
