The 2014 Ocean Marina Pattaya Boat Show (OMPBS), held 27th to 30th November at South East Asia’s largest marina, Ocean Marina, came to a close having set a series of new records. The largest exhibitor display (14,000 sqm) and the most exhibitors (150) ever, as well as the best quality line-up of boats in-the-water and the largest visitor turnout yet.
Now in its third year, the organisers decision to expand the Show to a four-day format proved to be a wise one as the opening two days (Thursday and Friday) attracted almost half the total number of visitors with many being interested buyers.
A mixed visitor demographic of primarily Europeans and Thais was recorded through the gates with interest in the boat displays at an all time high. With the size of the Show, in terms of number of exhibitors and display area, up considerably this year, the quality and diversity of products and services from the marine and lifestyle sectors was also more than ever before.
The line-up of boats in-the-water at the 2014 Ocean Marina Pattaya Boat Show was the best ever.
Yacht dealers and brokers reported solid sales leads and hot prospects – all new buyers that came from the Show. Similarly, the automotive sector – including Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Bentley, Porsche and more – reported tangible sales leads as did the luxury real estate offerings at the Show.
The diverse range of marine accessories and marine products, a sector of the Show that continues to grow and something that sets OMPBS apart from other shows in the region, saw sales in the region of over USD50,000. Property developers reported strong interest, luxury products such as jewellery recorded large purchases and the Food and Beverage outlets in the Show reported record sales.
Visitors enjoyed the array of activities on offer: the free yacht cruises which departed every 30 minutes were full throughout the Show, and the display of water toys in action and the jetpack flying board demonstrations proved to be popular with all.
Introduced for the first time this year, the International Fishing Boat Competition, organised by the Thailand Fishing Tackle Trade and Manufacture Association in co-operation with Ocean Marina, was a big hit with lots of tough competition over the two days and talk of expanding it further next year, while the one day Boat & Yacht Thailand 2014 Conference, held under the theme of ‘Green Boating’, took place to a packed meeting room of over 70 industry and guests.
Eco Explorer Raphael Domjan, who is also the CEO of Solar Stratos, was on hand at the boat show and in an interview with PMTV he talked about his passion to open new doors to do something nobody had done before.
“My dream was to be the first person to go around the world in a solar powered boat and that dream became a reality in 2010 to 2012 on board Planet Solar. The aim was to use the stopovers as a way to communicate to the trade about the advancements in solar energy. In January 2015 we will start construction of the world’s fist solar powered plane and in 2017 we aim to go into the age of space with the solar airplane.”
He also has a vision to address issues in our environment.
“Now our world is rich, but it is dirty; our goal is to use renewable energy to get us back to a clean environment, so by using solar energy we can still be a rich planet, but also a clean one.”
The array of water toys proved popular with visitors.
Raphael talked about Heliotrope, which was built at the Bakri Cono shipyard at Ocean Marina.
“The lighting, the cooking, and computers all are powered from the solar panels on top of the boat. It is the 1st Assist solar powered boat. The cost of utilizing solar power is all at the beginning. Yes there is a huge initial outlay, but after that your power is free for 20 years. For instance, on Solar Planet we got all our power for free. That’s a saving every day of 1000 litres of gasoline, which of course is far cleaner for the environment.”
At present one of the major challenges is that there is not enough marinas who can cater for solar powered boats, so there is something of a catch-22 situation.
“In order to move forward, we need the cooperation of governments to embrace this. It was the same with cars way back. For example, perhaps remove or reduce the tax for solar boats.”
Planning is already underway for the fourth annual Ocean Marina Pattaya Boat Show, which will take place at Ocean Marina 26th to 29th November 2015.
