Airports of Thailand (AOT) is planning to build solar-cell power plants at its six airports nationwide.
"This is one of the projects that AOT hopes will help in cost reduction as the company aims to be a green airport in the near future," AOT president Serirat Prasutanond said last week.
The first plant will be located on 100 rai of land on the east side of Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.
AOT's board hopes it will produce about six megawatts per year or 30 per cent of the total energy consumed at Suvarnabhumi.
The first project would need Bt700 million to Bt800 million and was expected to recoup the investment within seven years.
Construction would take one year.
AOT and the Provincial Electricity Authority would hold a combined 49 per cent of the project and invite the private sector to take 51 per cent.
The investment is also in response to a carbon trade being implemented in the European Union.
The company aims to build more solar-powered plants at its other airports in Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Phuket and Chiang Rai.
AOT is also planning to install a radio frequency identification or RFID tagging system to improve luggage sorting at Suvarnabhumi.
The system will supplement its existing barcode system, which has become inefficient.
Some leading airports in Hong Kong, South Korea, the Netherlands, Japan and Portugal have already installed an RFID tag system
On Saturday, local people and official bodies in Chiang Rai proposed that AOT rename Chiang Rai International Airport as Mae Fah Luang International Airport, Chiang Rai.
The company would hire the International Civil Aviation Organisation again to study single airport usage in Bangkok, at a cost of Bt30 million. ICAO earlier studied dual airport usage.
"AOT needs more options for the government to consider what to do with the airports in Bangkok," Serirat said.
AOT's operating results this year would be the worst since Suvarnabhumi opened in September 2006, due to the global economic crisis and domestic political problems, he said.
Passenger arrivals are expected to drop by 10 per cent from the targeted 41 million to 38 million.
Total airlines are also forecast to fall by 4.5 per cent from last year.
And the company suffered from a cutback in providing airport services to other airlines buffeted by the crisis over the past year, he added.
From The Nation
