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HRH Princess Soamsawali recently presided over the opening ceremony of a new deepwater seaport at Kantang district in Trang province.

Yusob Buachoei, a senior executive of Yusob International Kantang Port, said the new deepwater port was the first private seaport in Kantang district. It has been operating since 2007.

"As builders of the new seaport using sustainable environment methods, Yusob International Kantang Port believes that it will play a vital role in stimulating the shipping industry and the economy of Trang," he said.

Kantang seaport is already an important centre for exporting to countries in the region, and the volume of exports continues to rise, a positive sign for business in the coming year.

According to Kantang Customs records for fiscal 2008 (October 2007-September 2008), the value of exports from Kantang seaport was Bt14.7 billion, compared to Bt11.5 billion in the same period last year. Main exports are rubber products, rubber wood, cement, gypsum and sodium feldspar. The positive trend is driven by an agreement among Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia to open their sea routes to shipping, which has benefited Thailand's exports to neighbouring countries.

"The new seaport project was initiated because all authorities recognised that seaports in Trang would have great potential for the shipping industry and would increase business on Thailand's east and west coasts," said Yusob.

To develop the competitiveness and efficiency of Trang coastal ports as a regional distribution hub, a meeting of the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) agreed on a budget of Bt170 million for the new seaport. It would not have been possible to increase the size of the old port in Kantang because of its limited area. There were also complaints about pollution from local communities.

The new deepwater seaport is only two kilometres from the old site and has enough space to allow for future expansion. It can accommodate vessels with a draught of 10,000 tons compared to the 7,700-ton limit of the old seaport.

The new Kantang seaport is a valuable centre for importing coal and machinery and the export of gypsum, block rubber, feldspar, barite, cement, palm-oil meal and iron.