Srettha visits Samui, promises 12bn baht cruise terminal approved this year
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Sunday promised to have Cabinet approve approve a cruise-terminal project on Koh Samui with a projected investment value of 12.172 billion baht.
Srettha made the promise to Samui residents at 10.30am on Sunday while he was visiting the prospective site of the terminal at Laem Hin Khom cape on the popular tourist-destination island in Surat Thani province.
Srettha is on an official trip to Koh Samui and Nakhon Si Thammarat from Saturday to Monday. He and his delegation arrived at the Samui airport Saturday evening and stayed overnight on the island.
His delegation included Tourism and Sports Minister Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol, Deputy Transport Minister Manaporn Charoensri and Deputy Agriculture Minister Chaiya Promma.
The project was proposed by the Marine Department and is in the process of a feasibility study.
At the prospective site, Srettha was briefed on the project by Kritphet Chaichuay, director general of the Marine Department.
Kritphet said the project is expected to be carried out under the public-private partnerships law.
Once approved by Cabinet, construction would take three years to complete, from 2027 to 2029.
The terminal project would cover 47 rai, including 15 rai on the shore and the rest covering sea space.
The department expects the construction to cost some 12.172 billion baht. The private winner of the project would be allowed to operate the cruise terminal for 30 years from 2029 to 2059.
Kritphet said the terminal would allow some 120 cruise ships to dock per year and thus accommodate some 180,000 tourists anually.
He said each tourist could be expected spend some 5,000 baht while visiting Koh Samui.
Srettha said that once the terminal is completed, it should have a duty-free shop for tourists.
The prime minister said he expected this year would see a new the record of the most cruise-ship arrivals at Koh Samui. That record was set in 2018 with 74 arrivals.
He asked Samui residents who came to welcome him whether they would like to see the terminal built. After they shouted “yes”, Srettha said his Cabinet would approve the project by year-end as a New Year present for the islanders.
He added that the project would be counted as a KPI (key performance indicator) for the Marine Department to rush it to Cabinet in time for approval within this year.
Srettha said he would also like to see a marina built near the cruise terminal for yachts and sailboats. He also wanted to sea airport built so that seaplanes could shuttle tourists from islands nearby.
After the briefing, Srettha and his delegation visited a demonstration durian orchard on the island. The orchard is owned by Chainarong Thongsuk and is located in Tambon Na Muang of Samui district.
