Ms Somrudee met with Phuket Vice Governor Piyapong Choowong along with Amorn Intaracharoen, CEO of Phuket Pearl Group, and Wittaya Wongwichiankul, Secretary-General of the Chamber of Commerce of the Southern Andaman Provinces, yesterday (Nov 11) to discuss the project, which has now been branded by the government as the ‘Marina Chumchon’ (Community Marina) project.
The concept for the project is ‘Marina for All’, explained a government release.
The project is to develop six piers in six Andaman coastal provinces, including Cape Yamu Pier in Phuket.
The other five piers are the Koh Yao Noi Pier in Phang Nga, Pak Bara Pier in Satun, Pak Meng Pier in Trang, Praphakhan (Lighthouse) Pier in Ranong and the Ao Nammao Pier in Krabi.
The project aims to “upgrade marine transport to meet world standards and support the transport of local products and [support] tourism at the same time, with safety and convenience as the priorities”, said the government report, adding that project is mainly aimed at developing local piers by upgrading them with “Smart Pier” systems.
The Smart Piers are to include features such as face scanning, tracking wristbands, disaster warnings, solar power and EV charging stations.
“The piers will be developed under a universal design, so every person can use them,” the release said.
“For the Community Marina project, Banpu Next is ready to work with officials and other private companies in order to find the best solution for problems in Phuket and help develop Phuket to become a Smart City,” Mrs Somrudee said.
V/Gov Piyapong welcomed the invitation to continue working with Banpu Next. “We are pleased to cooperate with private companies, but all the works must be based on local people’s benefits. The cooperation will be a good chance for Phuket to improve the residences’ lives and the facilities to welcome tourists.”
Phuket Pearl Group CEO Mr Amorn also welcomed the initiative.“I am very glad that Banpu Next Co Ltd pay attention to developing Phuket with technology. I expect that we will have a chance to work together to improve Phuket,” he said.