The Central Administrative Court on Friday granted Central Pattana Plc (CPN) an injunction and ordered the removal of obstacles blocking access to Central Village, thereby allowing it to open the 5-billion-baht luxury outlet on Saturday as planned.
The court ruling stated that Airports of Thailand (AoT), has obstructed and could cause damage to CPN's operations.
CPN petitioned the court on Aug 23, the day after AoT placed obstacles at the entrance to the luxury shopping complex located on Highway No.370.
The court heard the case for four hours on Wednesday but did not reach a decision. It convened again yesterday and handed down the ruling.
In it, the court dismissed AoT's claim that the second-phase development would be detrimental to Suvarnabhumi airport and the country's economy if CPN was allowed to use the access road.
The court said such a claim was merely a presumption.
The ruling also stated that allowing CPN to use the disputed land as an access road, as well as other utilities, to operate Central Village has not caused any damage as claimed by AoT.
The court also stated that its injunction will not impede AoT operations.
CPN president and CEO Preecha Ekkunagul said the company, 150 tenant shops and more than 1,000 employees, thanked the court and media for bringing about a just ruling.
"The new mall will open its doors at 10.39am on Saturday [today] as planned," he said.
He reiterated that the project had obtained all necessary legal permits from related state agencies and local administrations overseeing town planning.
"Our existence doesn't obstruct aviation in terms of height and activities. [The project is] in line with ICAO [International Civil Aviation Organisation] regulations," he said.
In addition to a 1,500-space car park, shuttle bus services will be available from CentralWorld in downtown Bangkok and the BTS Udomsuk station, he said.
AoT, the operator of Suvarnbhumi airport, and CPN, the retail giant, had locked horns over the construction of an access road from Highway No.370 to the new mall next to the airport.
On Aug 21, AoT claimed the project encroached on state property and put up a board to that effect on the disputed land.
It then blocked access to Gate 1 of Central Village the next day by erecting a large tent and intermittent barriers on the road for a distance of 1km.
As a result, the project's construction workers could not bring materials and tools to the site.
But CPN insisted it had permission from the Department of Highways to use the land, and on Wednesday, CPN filed another petition with the Central Administrative Court accusing AoT of breaching the permit it received from the Highways Department to build the access road from Highway 370.
Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob yesterday said it had still not been ascertained exactly under whose authority the disputed area falls as there are four agencies involved: the AoT, the Department of Airports, the Department of Highways and the Treasury.
Ultimately, CPN will have to ask for permission to use the area from the appropriate agency, he said.
As for safety issues, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand has said there are none. However, it has been asked to re-examine the matter, the minister added.
AoT president Nitinai Sirismatthakarn earlier denied criticism the AoT was protecting the interests of King Power, its duty-free concessionaire, the party believed most likely to suffer as a result of a mall of that scale opening nearby.
"Someone broke the law and we have to take action. We told CPN it encroached on our land in May last year," he said, responding to criticism about why it had waited until the project was about to open before taking the matter to court.