Bangkok: With all eyes increasingly focused on the megaport of Dawei the Thai private sector has told the government to ditch long held plans to build a deepsea port at Pak Bara in Satun province.
Initial plans, dating back a decade, called for Pak Bara to become Thailand’s largest Indian Ocean port with container throughput of 800,000 teu a year.
Since then, however, Thailand has become focused on the joint development of Dawei in Myanmar, something that in scale dwarfs anything planned for Pak Bara.
One of many issues Pak Bara’s port plans faced was its location meant development would infringe into the adjoining Petra Marine National Park.
The government says it will decide on the project by the end of February. An alternative plan mooted is to construct a new port in Songkhla province in the Gulf of Thailand to promote trade and investment in the south. [31/01/13]
