On June 13, Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, CEO of King Power Corporation, revealed that King Power Duty Free Co., Ltd. had formally submitted a letter to the President of Airports of Thailand (AOT) in May 2025, seeking to discuss the termination of duty-free retail contracts at three regional airports: Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Hat Yai. This request was made prior to his assuming the role.
King Power was granted the right to operate duty-free stores at these airports from September 28, 2020, until March 31, 2033. However, persistent impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, global economic downturn, geopolitical conflicts, and a significant drop in Chinese passenger numbers have severely affected sales.
The letter cited that AOT had shifted its concession fee model from a fixed rate to a per-passenger basis (“Sharing Per Head”) at 127.30 baht per outbound, transit, and inbound passenger. Given the global challenges, this model has become an unsustainable financial burden compared to declining revenues.
King Power previously alerted AOT to seven force majeure factors, including global conflicts, trade barriers, and economic slowdown, which made it impossible to meet operational targets and led to recurring payment deferrals.
The company also criticized AOT’s handling of the matter as one-sided and lacking fairness in negotiations, undermining confidence in AOT’s equitable treatment as a state enterprise partner.
Citing ongoing uncertainty, King Power formally requested negotiations with AOT to seek a mutually agreeable resolution—including possible contract termination—within 45 days.
Meanwhile, the company proposed to pay 20% of monthly sales revenue starting July 2025, with the first payment due by August 29, 2025. It also requested that AOT not treat this payment arrangement as a breach of contract until the negotiation outcome is finalized.