PATTAYA, Thailand – On Friday, 29th November, the British Chamber of Commerce Thailand (BCCT) held a dinner at the Eastpana Hotel in Bowin. There were over fifty attendees who had come from far and wide to hear Dr. Chula Sukmanop, Secretary-General of the Eastern Economic Corridor Office (EECO) talk about the plans that both the government and private sector have for the Eastern Seaboard (ESB).
The event was kindly sponsored by Silk Legal, WHA and Business Class Asia.
Before the dinner started, there was a chance to network with other people who did business on the ESB. Graham Macdonald, Chairman of Macallan Insurance Broker, was seen in earnest conversation with Jon Rose, Director of GKN Driveline. They were then joined by Dr. Chula and discovered they all supported the same football team!
Alex Woods of CognosDX was seen chatting with Gary Cannon of Easson Energy. Alex Hayden-Gilbert of Silk Legal was talking away with all and sundry as was Noah Shepherd.
Franscesc Domingo, an Associate Director from Concept I, drove down from Bangkok with Pinyapa (Aime) Somphong, Managing Partner of TWLS Co. Ltd. and Vice Chair of BCCT, just to hear what Dr. Chula would be talking about.
Everyone was looking forward to what the guest speaker was going to say. It is quite common knowledge that the biggest investors in the EEC are China, Japan, Singapore and other East Asian countries but how to attract investment from elsewhere in the world and also here in Thailand?
After the networking, Greg Watkins, Executive Director of BCCT, welcomed everyone to the event and updated people on the chamber’s latest news. Amongst which was the fact that Graham Macdonald, a previous Chairman of BCCT, was now an Adviser to the Secretary-General of the EECO.
Greg then invited Donna Moolman, Vice Chair of BCCT, Chair of BCCT’s Eastern Seaboard Working Group and Head of Finance SE Asia & Director of Lucy Electric (Thailand) Ltd to introduce Dr. Chula Sukmanop.
The title of Dr. Chula’s presentation was, “EEC Support for Businesses Operating in the ESB” but this was also appropriate for companies who are based anywhere in Thailand and are looking to open up on the ESB.
Dr. Chula stated the ESB was a vital strategic location, not only for Thailand but the whole of South East Asia. He went on to explain that in 2017, the Royal Thai Government initiated the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) to be an area-based development initiative aiming to revitalise the well-known Eastern Seaboard of Thailand. The ESB comprises of the provinces of Rayong, Chonburi, and Chachoengsao.
The main objectives of the new enterprise are:
1. Developing modern and environmentally friendly economic activities
2. Providing comprehensive government services
3. Creating efficient infrastructure and public utilities
4. Determining the appropriate use of land
5. Developing cities to be modern and suitable for living and doing business
On top of this, there are five targeted clusters that are really important to the government and so can offer the most incentives for companies considering investment into Thailand.
These are:
֍ Medical & Health – medical and comprehensive healthcare
֍ Digital – intelligent electronics, automation and robotics, defence
֍ Next Generation Automotive which is self-explanatory
֍ BCG – Green & Circular, Biofuel & Biochemical, Advanced Agriculture & Biotechnology, Food for the Future
֍ Services – High value and Medical tourism, Aerospace, Logistics, Education and Human Resources Development
Dr. Chula went on to expound further that for these targeted investment areas, there could be tailor-made incentives along with total solutions for starting operations. Basically, unlike so many alternatives, each case could be looked at on a bespoke basis.
An intricate part in all of this are the four key infrastructure projects already going ahead. These are:
֍ High Speed Rail which will connect Don Muang Airport and U-tapao via Suvarnabhumi and other connecting stations.
֍ Laem Chabang Deep Seaport (Phase 3) with the plan to increase container throughput to 18 million TEU per annum as well as build up roll-on/roll-off capacity to 3 million cars per year.
֍ Map Ta Phut Industrial Port (Phase 3) will see the overall port’s capacity increase to over 31 million tons per annum along with an additional 11 million tons per year in Liquid Natural Gas.
֍ U-tapao Airport will grow significantly. Part of the project is to build a second runway as well as a new passenger terminal. There will also be a Ground Transportation Center for Cargo, Maintenance Repair & Overhaul facilities, a Free Trade Zone as well as a new Airport City. There are also rumours of a Formula One (F1) track being built. All this to cater for the expected passenger influx of up to 60 million a year
After discussing the above in significant depth, Dr. Chula then went on to explain about the new EEC Capital City. The vision for this is for it to become a “Center of Regional Businesses & Financial Services” – A prime area for business centres and a liveable smart city where nature, people, and technology come together. Moving towards a BCG economy and becoming on of the Top 10 (most) Liveable Smart Cities in the world.
Dr. Chula finished by emphasizing that he and the EECO were there for all sizes of business. Financially speaking, the smallest investment enquiry they have has is less than GBP350,000 or THB15 million. This, therefore, shows that almost everyone can apply for an incentive scheme if it is appropriate – it does not matter if it is a small private enterprise looking for help to kickstart a new venture or if it is a multi-billion dollar Public Private Partnership.
Once he had finished speaking there was a queue of people wanting to ask questions and a host more who could wanted to put forward their own ideas. The evening finished with Dr. Chula saying he would always do what he could to promote the ESB and would help as much as possible.
Thank you to everyone who joined us at the BCCT Eastern Economic Corridor Dinner!
Attendees enjoyed fantastic evening insights, networking, and collaboration at the Eastpana Hotel Bowin Sriracha. Dr Chula Sukmanop, Secretary-General of the EEC, provided an in-depth look at the EEC’s strategies for supporting businesses on the Eastern Seaboard, sharing key opportunities for growth and innovation in the region.
A huge thank you to our event sponsors and their representatives for making this evening possible: Dr. Paul Crosio from Silk Legal, Ong-Ard Amatayakul from WHA Group, Paul Dickinson from Business Class Asia, and Donna Moolman from Lucy Electric.
Stay tuned for more events that bring the business community together!
A complete photo album from the dinner is attached below:
