18 Foreign Firms Get Green Light For Business In Thailand

[george]

18 foreign firms get green light for business in Thailand

BANGKOK, Feb 1 - Eighteen foreign companies have been approved to do business in the country with the total investment of some Bt1 billion (US$33 million), while the firms recruited 517 Thai employeess, according to deputy director-general of the Business Development Department Kulanee Isadisai.

Ms Kulanee said the Commerce Ministry's committee on foreign enterprises operating in Thailand decided on this matter at a recent meeting.

Japan holds 39 per cent of the new investment, and is the biggest investor followed by South Korea at 11 per cent, Italy and Hong Kong respectively.

The foreign businesses bringing in their investments are mostly partners with both the Thai public and private sectors and bring expertise in particular fields, with knowledge and technology to be passed on to Thais to benefit the country's basic infrastructure and entrepreneurs in other industries such as petroleum, mining, and steel.

Japan's Nihon Suido Consultants will consult in the construction of the water supply system and related matters for Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (Thailand), while Hyundai Heavy Industries from South Korea was approved to provide engineering services and equipment of natural gas for PTT Pcl.

Diamond Offshore Drilling from the Cayman Islands is to serve petroleum drilling for petroleum concession areas in the Gulf of Thailand, whereas Global Procurement Services (GPS), of which the biggest shareholder is from Hong Kong, was permitted to manage construction of a gold mine as an Industry Ministry concession.

Lastly, Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell (Hong Kong) will manage, install and test transmission equipment for Thailand’s GSM1800 network for True Move, the country's third largest mobile operator. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-02-01

[whybother]

18 firms ... $33 million ... less than $2 mil each ... What's the big deal??

[Pib]

517 more folks employed...every little bit helps.

[bangon04]

This is such good news - it shows how open Thailand is to the concept of cooperation with foreign firms. Not at all afraid of allowing the foreigners to actually make money while doing business in Thailand, and freely admitting that Thais can learn from the skills of the foreigner to improve the competitiveness of this great country.

33 million dollars. Wow. Next step foreign banking systems, foreign farming systems, foreign construction and transport infrastucture, the floodgates are now open..

[katasyd]

Oh look, Thailand cooking up some story that it's an investment friendly environment.

[janverbeem]

This is such good news - it shows how open Thailand is to the concept of cooperation with foreign firms. Not at all afraid of allowing the foreigners to actually make money while doing business in Thailand, and freely admitting that Thais can learn from the skills of the foreigner to improve the competitiveness of this great country.

33 million dollars. Wow. Next step foreign banking systems, foreign farming systems, foreign construction and transport infrastucture, the floodgates are now open..

I suggest you should read the OP once again.All these foreign company's are allowed to do business in Thailand because it benefits Thai company's e.g. they are able of something the company's in this fifth world country are not and they need it to stay alive.

Thailand foreign investment friendly,give me a break.This country is clearly in self destroy mode for the past few years.

[Ricci]

Oh look, Thailand cooking up some story that it's an investment friendly environment.

hey...that was my qoute

i can't wait fot the annual statistics. 20 to 500% more business, investments, tourists.....yadda yadda

cambodia, vietnam.....even laos. they brought thailand behind them in the race for foreign investment.

IF there is any country in SE-asia where it is more dufficult to open a business a/o to invest.....it's myanmar (perhaps)

[WarpSpeed]

This is such good news - it shows how open Thailand is to the concept of cooperation with foreign firms. Not at all afraid of allowing the foreigners to actually make money while doing business in Thailand, and freely admitting that Thais can learn from the skills of the foreigner to improve the competitiveness of this great country.

33 million dollars. Wow. Next step foreign banking systems, foreign farming systems, foreign construction and transport infrastucture, the floodgates are now open..

Honestly you forgot this didn't you?

[asiawatcher]

This is such good news - it shows how open Thailand is to the concept of cooperation with foreign firms. Not at all afraid of allowing the foreigners to actually make money while doing business in Thailand, and freely admitting that Thais can learn from the skills of the foreigner to improve the competitiveness of this great country.

33 million dollars. Wow. Next step foreign banking systems, foreign farming systems, foreign construction and transport infrastucture, the floodgates are now open..

I suggest you should read the OP once again.All these foreign company's are allowed to do business in Thailand because it benefits Thai company's e.g. they are able of something the company's in this fifth world country are not and they need it to stay alive.

Thailand foreign investment friendly,give me a break.This country is clearly in self destroy mode for the past few years.

Interesting comment !!!

[thaihome]

This is such good news - it shows how open Thailand is to the concept of cooperation with foreign firms. Not at all afraid of allowing the foreigners to actually make money while doing business in Thailand, and freely admitting that Thais can learn from the skills of the foreigner to improve the competitiveness of this great country.

33 million dollars. Wow. Next step foreign banking systems, foreign farming systems, foreign construction and transport infrastucture, the floodgates are now open..

I suggest you should read the OP once again.All these foreign company's are allowed to do business in Thailand because it benefits Thai company's e.g. they are able of something the company's in this fifth world country are not and they need it to stay alive.

Thailand foreign investment friendly,give me a break.This country is clearly in self destroy mode for the past few years.

The article is somewhat misleading in that it doesn’t actually come right out and say that these are all contracts made with Thai companies to do projects of various types in Thailand.

In the case the Hyundai project it is PTT spending about USD 100 million to construct pipelines to connect two new gas fields (by Chevron and PTTPE) to the existing transmission line to Rayong. Of that Hyundai will spend about USD 10 million in Thailand on their Bangkok office and other support for the project. The BOI gives companies some tax breaks when they do projects such as this.

Foreign engineering and construction companies have been doing business with both foreign owned and Thai companies amounting to many billions of USD in Thailand for over 40 years now.

TH

[geriatrickid]

Uhhh, isn't Japan providing a chunk of funding for Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (Thailand) projects and isn't one of the requirements that work be given to Japanese firms? Isn't Hyundai Heavy Industries selling the equipment to PTT because it isn't available in Thailand and the engineering services are part of the transaction?

Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell (Hong Kong) will manage, install and test transmission equipment. MMkay. It's not like there were Thai firms were available to do the work was there?

Why is this even news?

[seadoo]

Money coming into Thailand is like the S Bend of a toilet, it only goes one way.

[whybother]

Money coming into Thailand is like the S Bend of a toilet, it only goes one way.

Where else would you expect money coming INTO Thailand to go?

[thaihome]

Uhhh, isn't Japan providing a chunk of funding for Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (Thailand) projects and isn't one of the requirements that work be given to Japanese firms? Isn't Hyundai Heavy Industries selling the equipment to PTT because it isn't available in Thailand and the engineering services are part of the transaction?

Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell (Hong Kong) will manage, install and test transmission equipment. MMkay. It's not like there were Thai firms were available to do the work was there?

Why is this even news?

The reason it is in the news is these are companies that have been approved by BOI to enjoy certain tax breaks for doing work in Thailand.

In the case of Hyundai, they are not providing any equipment to PTT. PTT almost always does separate contracts directly with line pipe vendors and applies for its own BOI import duty exemption.

Hyundai is providing detailed engineering services and doing the installation with their own vessels. Much of the engineering will be done in their new Bangkok office and Hyundai is employing Thai engineers, under the supervision of Korean ones, to do that.

The point of my post was to show that Thailand welcomes certain types foreign firms to do work in Thailand, particularly those that have expertise in areas Thai companies may not have. They have done so for a long time.

TH

[janverbeem]

The point of my post was to show that Thailand welcomes certain types foreign firms to do work in Thailand, particularly those that have expertise in areas Thai companies may not have. They have done so for a long time.

TH

So in clear language..........Thailand welcomes foreign firms to work in Thailand but only if they can profit from it.

[Soutpeel]

The point of my post was to show that Thailand welcomes certain types foreign firms to do work in Thailand, particularly those that have expertise in areas Thai companies may not have. They have done so for a long time.

TH

So in clear language..........Thailand welcomes foreign firms to work in Thailand but only if they can profit from it.

Yes and your point is ?......many countries in the world operate this way...Malaysia, middle east countries etc to name a few and whats wrong with making profit ?....the foreign firms make a profit, the "local" company makes a profit..win win for everyone...

[janverbeem]

The point of my post was to show that Thailand welcomes certain types foreign firms to do work in Thailand, particularly those that have expertise in areas Thai companies may not have. They have done so for a long time.

TH

So in clear language..........Thailand welcomes foreign firms to work in Thailand but only if they can profit from it.

Yes and your point is ?......many countries in the world operate this way...Malaysia, middle east countries etc to name a few and whats wrong with making profit ?....the foreign firms make a profit, the "local" company makes a profit..win win for everyone...

My point is that in Malaysia and most other countries in this region Foreign company's are also welcomed if the profit is not onesided.

[pattayaorganic]

The point of my post was to show that Thailand welcomes certain types foreign firms to do work in Thailand, particularly those that have expertise in areas Thai companies may not have. They have done so for a long time.

TH

So in clear language..........Thailand welcomes foreign firms to work in Thailand but only if they can profit from it.

Yes and your point is ?......many countries in the world operate this way...Malaysia, middle east countries etc to name a few and whats wrong with making profit ?....the foreign firms make a profit, the "local" company makes a profit..win win for everyone...

My point is that in Malaysia and most other countries in this region Foreign company's are also welcomed if the profit is not onesided.

And you say that Bumiputra policy in Malaysia is not restrictive?