Impact draws out projects by the lake

 Managing director Paul Kanjanapas said the first project would be a Bt2-billion theme park, to be constructed along the lake.

The second will be a marina, comprising a harbour, shops, restaurants and cinemas, with a scenic lake view. 

The third project entails the expansion of the company’s hotel business. Impact currently has one hotel in operation – the Novotel Bangkok Impact – and plans to build another five or six properties.

A 600-room Ibis Hotel is already under construction under this part of the investment plan. 

The company recently bought the Eastin Lakeside Hotel at a cost of Bt450 million and plans to spend Bt550 million to renovate the property as a five-star hotel with 200 to 300 rooms.

Last but not least, the company will invest Bt500 million to build a five-storey retail building consisting of shops and restaurants on an area of 8,000sqm.

“We think 140,000sqm of exhibition space is enough, so we have come up with plans to build other facilities in order to make Impact a one-stop venue that meets our customers’ every need and lifestyle,” Paul said.

A comprehensive range of facilities would extend the length of stay of customers to three or four days, as they could spend time at the theme park, shopping or playing golf. He said the inspiration behind the plan was Sentosa in Singapore – albeit without the casinos or Universal Studios. 

Impact Exhibition Management has hired Sanderson Group, an Australian thematic design and construction company that designed Disney Seas in Tokyo and Universal Studios Singapore, to help with the project. 

“Impact will develop over 50 rai [8 hectares] of land around the lake into a theme park and water park. Sanderson Group might enter a joint venture with us if they find the project interesting with high potential to be successful,” the managing director said.

During a recent meeting with Sanderson, the two companies discussed the example of a theme park in Malaysia that was attracting around 10 million visitors a year.

They agreed that there was therefore plenty of opportunity to have a theme-park business at the Impact site, as the complex had the potential to attract more than 15 million visitors a year, he said.

If Impact Exhibition Management is satisfied with the investment analysis, construction of the theme park will commence early this year, with work completed in two years. It is expected to be open for the public in late 2017 or early 2018.

In the future, the company might need to build another hotel in the theme park for customers’ convenience and to accommodate meeting, incentive, convention and exhibition (MICE) travellers in case the Novotel Hotel and Ibis Hotel were fully occupied, he said. Meanwhile, the marina project, which will be developed on 10-30 rai along the lake, could be completed ahead of the theme park.

The five-star hotel at the marina, which will be a renovation of the 20-year-old Eastin Lakeside Hotel, is expected to be launched within a year, he said. 

“We have always wanted to operate a five-star hotel. The reasons we bought the Eastin Lakeside Hotel are that it is strategically located near the lake, and it is my grandfather’s legacy,” he added.

As for Impact Exhibition and Convention Centre, the company plans to make all meeting facilities connected, and will construct the new retail building close to Impact Arena. 

The retail building will be also equipped with a skywalk, which will connect Impact Exhibition Centre with Impact Challenger 1.

The project is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

Impact also plans to add 12 more badminton courts and a 25-metre swimming pool to its sports complex. 

These projects will boost the occupancy rate of its exhibition centre and help the company become more competitive in the exhibition market, Paul said. 

The current occupancy rate of Impact is 60 per cent. 

Paul also said the company this year may consider enlarging the size of its Impact Growth Real Estate Investment Trust by transferring the Novotel Bangkok Impact Hotel and Indoor Parking 3, which can accommodate 2,000 cars, into the REIT.