PTT Oil and Retail Business to start building hotels in petrol stations next year

PTT Oil and Retail Business Plc (OR), the oil trading arm of PTT Plc, will finalise its long-delayed budget hotel investment project next month, according to Wilaiwan Kanjanakanti, senior executive vice-president for finance and chief financial officer.

The company completed a feasibility study and received board approval to move forward with the plan, with plans for a hotel constructed within a PTT petrol station.

Strategic partners for the co-development are expected to be announced in the fourth quarter, with construction scheduled for the first half of next year. The hotel is slated to open by late 2026.

Although the development cost was not disclosed, OR executives said the project will cater to travellers and professionals seeking affordable lodging during long journeys.

The hotel, expected to feature 70-80 rooms, will include facilities such as ample parking, a Café Amazon outlet, an Ottari laundry service and a 7-Eleven convenience store, designed to resemble a modern rest stop.

The concept was first studied in 2016, but shelved amid concerns that PTT, with majority ownership controlled by government institutions, might be constitutionally barred from competing directly with private operators. The plan was further delayed by the pandemic, which devastated Thailand’s tourism industry.

Meanwhile, OR continues to face challenges abroad. In Cambodia, 50 PTT petrol stations were rebranded under local ownership following escalating territorial disputes between the two countries, said Ms Wilaiwan.

Rising ultra-nationalism and boycotts of Thai brands have sharply reduced sales, despite OR’s significant footprint of 186 stations and 254 Café Amazon outlets as of June. OR is reviewing its five-year investment plan for 2025-2029.

The company earmarked 60.4 billion baht for oil and non-oil businesses, adjusting its strategy based on forecasts of prolonged low prices for crude oil and slower growth in Thailand’s electric vehicle market, she said.