Thailand's aviation industry is poised for continued growth, driven by increasing travel and rising demand for jet fuel, according to Bangkok Aviation Fuel Services Plc (BAFS).
This growth is expected to benefit aviation-related businesses, including refuelling services offered by the company to airlines at Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports.
A healthier aviation industry, following a slowdown during the pandemic, is among the factors that led to BAFS's promising business outlook, with estimated year-on-year revenue growth of 18% to 3.6 billion baht this year, said company president ML Nathasit Diskul.
One key reason for the trend is more air travel, leading to higher consumption of jet fuel.
Usage of jet fuel in Thailand increased significantly between January and June this year.
The peak tourist season in the first half, coupled with the visa-free scheme and a rise in flights during extended holidays, led to a 17% increase in jet fuel consumption, reaching 15.7 million litres per day, up from 13.5 million litres per day, according to the Department of Energy Business.
BAFS expects its sales of jet fuel to grow by 16% year-on-year to 5 billion litres in 2024, up from 4.3 billion litres last year, said ML Nathasit.
The Bank of Thailand reported increasing numbers of foreign tourists in July. The number of foreign tourist arrivals after seasonal adjustments was 3.1 million, compared with 2.7 million the previous month, said the central bank.
The increase was attributed to visitors from Malaysia, China, Russia and Europe, although the number of tourists from the Middle East and India declined.
The growing number of air travellers led Airports of Thailand (AoT) to devise a new plan to upgrade the facilities of Suvarnabhumi airport to accommodate 80 million passengers a year by 2031.
In September last year, AoT opened a new satellite terminal at Suvarnabhumi airport, which raised the annual passenger capacity to 60 million, up from 45 million. AoT president Kerati Kijmanawat said earlier the company is reviewing its master plan for expanding the airport's capacity over 10 years to meet the government's goal of having the airport rank in the top 20 globally within five years.
