The owners of private jets flying out of Seletar Airport may be super-rich but many are peeved by the comparatively high price of aviation fuel there.
While jet fuel at Changi Airport currently costs US$3.17 (S$3.96) a United States gallon, at Seletar the price is at least US$4.61.
At Senai Airport in Johor, Seletar’s main and closest competitor for the private jet market, the price is US$3.37 a gallon. Furthermore, there is a surcharge at Seletar for refuelling between 10pm and 6am.
With fuel capacity of private jets ranging between 1,000 and 6,000 gallons, filling up at Seletar’s pumps could cost up to US$7,440 more than at its Malaysian rival.
The difference in price has become an issue for those based at Seletar, with a group of private jet operators writing to complain to the Changi Airport Group (CAG), which owns and manages the airport.
According to the letter, which was seen by TODAY, the operators noted that ensuring cost competitiveness in aviation fuel would go a long way towards strengthening the status of Seletar Airport as the premier business aviation hub in the region.
One of the operators, who wished to remain anonymous, told TODAY that the issue is a major concern for those who prefer to avoid the hassle of commercial flights: “They may be able to afford the higher price but, as you know, the rich get richer counting their pennies and they never like being taken for a ride.” He added that Seletar could probably attract more of the region’s super-rich to base their planes here if it was more competitive.
The letter emphasised that point by highlighting that there are competing hubs in the region.
One operator — Executive Jet Asia, which was founded by Singaporeans Prithpal Singh and David Ho — has moved most of its operations to Senai, investing RM40 million (S$16.2 million) in runway facilities to try to lure business jets there with much cheaper rates. And while Senai provides for instrument landing, Seletar has yet to install such facilities, which means in very bad weather, planes have to divert to Changi or Senai.
In response to the letter, Seletar’s General Manager Lim Ching Kiat wrote back to the operators: “We would like to inform you that the Changi Airport Group, with support from CAAS (Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore), EDB (Economic Development Board) and JTC (Jurong Town Corporation), is currently embarking on a review of the fuel licensing and operating model at Selatar Airport, with the objective of improving cost competitiveness and service level.”
Mr Lim explained that the jet fuel supply chains for Changi and Seletar are “distinct and separate”. At Changi, fuel is brought by barge and piped directly to a storage facility at the airport, whereas at Seletar, it is brought in by fuel trucks from Shell’s terminal at Pandan Road.
In addition, economies of scale may be an issue, according to Mr Lim. “The fuel uplift volume at Seletar is significantly lower than at Changi — which could be one of the reasons why fuel prices are higher at Seletar,” he said.
The review of Seletar’s fuel price comes at a time when the Asian private jet sector is poised to soar to even greater heights.
Currently, there are only about half a dozen Singaporeans with private jets, including businessman and hotelier Ong Beng Seng, Ezra Holdings founder Lee Kian Soo, and former remisier Peter Lim. There are also another dozen or so owners from the region who base their jets here.
But that could change rapidly. According to manufacturer Bombardier, Asia-Pacific is expected to be one of the fastest-growing markets for business jets in the run-up to 2030, with sales forecast at 1,145 planes. And Asians may own as much as 20 per cent of the global luxury jet fleet by 2017 as economic growth spawns new millionaires across the region, Jetsolution International Services said at the beginning of the year.
A CAG spokesman said the results of the Seletar review would be made public next month.
SOURCE
Quite an astonishing figure to know about the fuel cost at Seletar Airport in Singapore. These businessmen jet owners are rich, but they ain't stupid. After increasing the parking fees by ten times in 2012 and now this, it seems that Seletar is the place to avoid. CAG will better do something quick before jeopardizing Singapore's masterplan of being an aviation hub in the region.
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