A government committee will present a feasibility study on the building of a spaceport in Thailand for official consideration.
The study on the Spaceport Thailand project has been drawn up by the House Committee on Communications, Telecommunications and Digital Economy and Society, according to Col Settapong Malisuwan, the committee's vice chairman.
Col Settapong said on Tuesday that the committee would soon submit the feasibility study to the House meeting and affiliated agencies about outer space launching services and outer space launching infrastructure.
The study shows that the spaceport industry has been lucrative for those countries already involved in it.
It will also show how Thailand could benefit economically from joining the spaceport industry.
The core of a successful space industry for any country is to build a domestic spaceport which is efficient and fundamentally well-organised, Col Settapong said, citing the study.
To be a reality, such a project needs approval and support from the government and affiliated agencies so to supply best what is needed -- from infrastructure to personnel, he said.
Col Settapong added that Thailand has the benefit of being in close proximity to the equator, which assists rocket speed on launch, resulting in less fuel consumption.
He said Spaceport Thailand would be a major infrastructure project which would assist the country's economy.
Its construction would create job opportunities in aerospace engineering, space manufacturing, petroleum, energy and space tourism, he said.
Many new occupation types not seen in Thailand before would also be created, such as spacecraft manufacturers, spacecraft payload manufacturers, spacecraft electronic technicians and spacecraft import inspectors.
"To create new innovation for emerging tech occupations will result in valuable income," he said.
However, Thailand currently lacks personnel who are competent for the space industry, he said.
"Therefore, we have to develop, support and equip people who have the potential for these roles to make it a success," Col Settapong said.
He added that the endorsement for space business would provide great knowledge about earth observation satellites, geoinformatics and their applied uses.
