WHA Utilities and Power Plc (WHAUP), PTT Plc, Sertis Co., Ltd. and PEA recently co-hosted an online seminar to introduce the Renewable Energy Exchange (“RENEX”) platform, a Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading system using Blockchain technology.
RENEX will enhance efficiency and security of transactions and facilitate energy trading between industrial users. As part of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Sandbox scheme, the platform will allow participating companies to freely trade solar power directly with one another via the grid network of PEA.
During the seminar, Mr. Punrapee Noparumpa (left), WHAUP’s Director of Power Business Development, together with Mr. Prasong Intaranongpai (center left), PTT’s Executive Vice President, Strategy & Portfolio Management, Mr. Thuchakorn Vachiramon (right), Sertis’ CEO and Founder, and Mr. Kritsanapol Duanghom (center right), PEA’s Deputy Director of Renewable Energy Promotion and Small Power Plant Department, introduced the platform features and conducted platform usage training for the participants in preparation for real energy trading that is soon to take place.
S Hotels & Resorts Plc (SHR), Singha Estate Pcl’s hospitality arm, expects growth to hit a record-high revenue of THB8.5 billion in 2022, nearly doubling year on year, from THB4.5 billion in 2021.
The growth will push SHR to become the No. 2 Thai hotel operator in terms of revenue, due to the fast recovery in tourism, its well-diversified hospitality portfolios, upgraded services and offerings to reach high tourist demands, and enhanced direct booking.
SHR held an online press conference on Thursday to reveal its plans and goals for 2022.
“The tourism sector continues to recover in many parts of the world. We foresee increasing demand in the hospitality business, including our properties in the five top leisure destinations, particularly in the UK and The Maldives, whose contributions accounted for 44 per cent and 28 per cent, respectively,” said SHR’s chief executive officer, Dirk De Cuyper.
Another key factor that will drive 2022 revenue is the success of the property renovation and the creation of value-added features in all identified potential properties to cater to guests’ various preferences and lifestyle needs, he said.
Three SHR properties have been renovated and undergone brand conversion to align with the homegrown brand and self-managed platform,
SHR’s strategy in driving the business using digital marketing to create customised platforms for the wider implementation of direct booking has given the company more resilience and adaptability. In 2022, the company expects revenue contribution from direct bookings to total revenue to increase from an average of 10 per cent in previous years to 30 per cent in 2022, he said.
As part of a three-year plan, the company has earmarked approximately THB7.3 billion to further expand the growth of portfolios. A total budget of THB2.8 billion has been set aside to enhance its asset rotation strategy for existing properties and the construction of SO/Maldives, which is set to launch in 2023. The other THB4.5 billion is set for the merger and acquisition plan for new properties.
“For new properties, we have eyed M&A [mergers and acquisitions] projects around the Asia-Pacific coast and the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean within the THB4.5 billion budget. We also aim to focus on being a hotel operator, either through a flagship homegrown brand or partnering with leading international brands for business expansion. With the efforts, we target to reach our goals of tripling our size within 2024,” added De Cuyper.
Mobile phones are a must-have for most Thais and the mobile-phone service is big business in the Kingdom. Thailand’s telecommunications landscape is expected to change drastically if True Corporation and Total Access Communication (Dtac) are allowed to go ahead with their merger Plan.
Before the merger takes place, let’s look at the current players in Thailand’s mobile telecom industry:
Thailand’s mobile network operators
Advanced Info Service (AIS) TrueMove H Dtac National Telecom (NT) KEY FACTS
Guardians AIS: INTOUCH Company (40.45%), Singtel (23.32%) TrueMove H: CP Group (49.99%), China Mobile (18%) Dtac: Telenor (46.71%), Thai Telco Holdings (18.33%) NT: Formed via the merger of the Communications Authority of Thailand (CAT) and Telephone Organisation of Thailand (TOT)
Thai mobile phone users, who were happy with having a choice of four operators, became concerned last year when Norwegian telecom giant Telenor announced it was discussing the possibility of a Dtac-True merger with CP Group.
What happens if the merger goes ahead?
The new company will become the largest mobile operator, pushing AIS to second place. Market share after the merger TrueMove H + Dtac: 52.22% AIS: 44.31% NT 3.41%
Subscribers after merger TrueMove H + Dtac: 51,257,700 AIS: 43,233,700 NT: 3,333,752
Different scenarios • The new company will have more funds to invest in the infrastructure, which may result in a better network and wider coverage. • Some subscribers may switch to AIS based on their experience with either TrueMove H or Dtac. • Dtac subscribers will be entitled to other services offered by True. • AIS users may switch to a new company if it offers better services at a more competitive price. • Users will have fewer choices. • Only two main players can mean less competition, resulting in fewer promotions, milder price-cutting strategy, and fewer innovations in technology and services.
The face of the new player
It is believed that after the merger, the shareholding ratio of the new company will be: CP Group: 28.98% Telenor: 19.64% Thai Telco Holdings: 7.71% China Mobile: 10.43% Other shareholders: 33.24%
The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, relevant House of Representatives committee and consumer protection bodies are being urged to investigate the proposed merger and the impact it will have on the country’s telecommunications industry, including potential market dominance.
EA Anywhere is seen as a pioneer and the leader in the charging service business, which is in line with EA’s strategy to become the complete leader in EV.
To prepare for the future of the Thai automotive industry, three giants — Energy Absolute (EA), Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA), and J.R.W. Utility — have joined hands to develop EV smart charging stations to join the drive in making the country pollution-free and environmentally friendly.
As the world focuses on development that takes into account its impact on the environment and energy security, many countries are opting for environmentally friendly energy consumption, especially the automotive industry by developing more EVs. The Thai government has set a target to become the EV hub of Asean. However, the development of charging stations infrastructure in the country has been lagging.
Recently, EA’s subsidiary Energy Mahanakhon Co Ltd (EMN) signed a memorandum of understanding with MEA and JR for an EV smart charging station project to allow flexibility in EV usage with the first two projects.
EA’s chief executive officer Somphote Ahunai said that this cooperation will support EV usage. By supporting the development of more flexible EV charging stations, he said they had looked at the possibility of developing an EV smart charging station as well as other business opportunities that are related to EVs. MEA will help EV charging stations in applying for the electricity, while JR will plan and facilitate the engineering aspects related to the construction of EV charging stations with EMN.
“This cooperation will be a part of infrastructure development to support EV innovation for the automotive industry in the new era. It will also help to reach the goal set by the national EV road map of EVs comprising 30 per cent of all auto production by 2030. It comes with policies to support each aspect, including setting a target to instal public EV charging stations all over the country,” Somphote said.
Currently, EA Anywhere has around 430 charging stations and 1,800 outlets available from AV chargers to DC Ultra-Fast Charge that takes only 15 to 20 minutes. Moreover, there is an application “EA Anywhere” that will facilitate users with an online system for reservation, payment, and charging at the same time. The application has been downloaded 33,000 times. EA Anywhere is seen as a pioneer and the leader in the charging service business, which is in line with EA’s strategy to become the complete leader in EV.
JRW’s chief executive officer, Jarun Wiwatjesadawut, said that JR is responsible for designing, finding, and installing the electricity transfer system and network in this project. JR is also designing and developing the energy conservation system with EMN by finding places to instal charging stations of the appropriate size, number, and places for the project to support EV usage in Thailand.
As JR is a leader in ICT and electric system installation in Thailand, it has a team with expertise and experience of more than 28 years in installing telecommunication and information technology systems which are critical to make this project successful.
While digital assets hold huge potential to rival traditional capital markets, there is also a need for clear guidelines to ensure the least degree of risks, an online forum: “Digital Assets: The Financial World’s New Paradigm Shift” organised by The Nation and Asia News Network heard last week.
Zipmex co-founder and CEO Marcus Lim, PDAX founder, and CEO Nichel Gaba, and Fusang CEO Henry Chong shared their views on the growing digital assets trends, especially in the context of Asean.
Marcus Lim, the CEO, and co-founder of Zipmex, Singapore and a speaker at the forum, said: “The world needs to pay attention because people that are adopting digital assets are mostly the millennial generation and as they say, the genie’s out of the bag, there’s no way to pull this back in. All regulators have to pay attention, and almost everyone is adopting it. So the key is how to make regulators and policymakers think about ensuring that they still have a governing system that is in line with their local currency and how do they deal with cryptocurrency, which could be in conflict with the national currency.”
“The second is around the applications of blockchain. For the past six months, we’ve moved towards the NFT market space and very quickly into the metaverse space. We’re seeing big companies like Facebook rebranding themselves into Metaverse. And with the pandemic and lockdown, we’ve seen a lot of people not contacting each other in the physical world and moving into the virtual world. So can we create a virtual world where everyone can co-exist?”
Another trend to keep a close eye on for a year or two is payments. “Southeast Asia has a huge population that’s unbanked, like in Indonesia where 60 percent of the entire population has no bank accounts. Thailand has a slightly smaller proportion but slightly larger when compared to the Western world. And if we look at the way digital assets operate, effectively you can send value to anyone seamlessly and almost at no cost. So if you look at the traditional world where banks have to provide infrastructure to the mass population in order for them to be banked, that’s the whole nature of digital access. It can cut through and make everything more efficient and cost-effective. And I think the short-term trend I’d like to see is how we start to include Southeast Asia and not through just the traditional trade … but rather how crypto exchanges on all platforms play a part in inclusion.”
“The biggest thing that is holding us back is regulations. There’s a regulatory framework in place.”
Henry Chong, CEO of Fusang, Malaysia, Hong Kong, shared his views on the importance of security as one of the up-and-coming trends.
“The world of cryptocurrency and NFT is unbelievably exciting but 99 percent of assets, such as shares, funds, bonds, real estate, everything we see around us today, I think all these assets can, will, and should be tokenised as well. I think it is inevitable and I can’t imagine in the years to come that we will have these pieces of paper that represent all the assets that we own. I’m convinced that blockchain technology makes a lot of sense and we’re going to see traditional assets be tokenised and traded very similar to how cryptocurrencies are today. But the big difference is it becomes very important to be clear when you have a security token, what is the underlying asset? If the token represents shareholding in a company, what are the rights that I get, and what are the actual assets that I own. I think people can and will start looking at it through different lenses and what are the fundamental value drivers of securities like that.”
Nichel Gaba, the founder and CEO of PDAX, Philippines, said he had seen a new trend in the Philippines. While many people had lost their main income due to the pandemic, many had earned money through gaming that allowed them to earn tokens. Another popular trend he had witnessed was Cross-Border Remittances.
“Migrant workers are sending money into the country in a third currency, other than the peso, The use of Cross Border Remittances also grew in popularity and volume”
“In terms of investment, the Philippines equity market has been struggling to expand so many corporates and institutions are asking whether it would make more sense to raise capital via the token market.”
Nichel said cryptocurrency trading in the Philippines is around $3 million and $3.5 million, thanks to a strong cryptocurrency-friendly and savvy base.
When asked what advice he would give the younger generation interested in joining the digital world of crypto and NFTs, Gaba said: “Having been in the market throughout my career, I know how fast the weather can change. New investors should focus on developing real business skills,” he said.
“The genie is out of the bottle. It is a magic that is evolving very quickly,” he said.
The baht opened at 33.51 to the US dollar on Friday, unchanged from Thursday’s closing rate.
Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool predicted the Thai currency would move between 33.40 and 33.60 during the day.
Poon said the baht will continue to swing sideways.
The Thai currency is being pressured by the strengthening dollar after the US Federal Reserve moved to implement tighter monetary policies, as well as demand for “safe-haven” assets in the short term.
Poon advised keeping a close watch on foreign transactions in Thai stocks, forecasting short-term foreign outflows. However, he expected foreign investors to continue purchasing bonds, which would support the baht and ensure it did not weaken much.
Exporters are selling the dollar in a range between 33.50 and 33.60. Poon said the baht would likely not weaken past that point unless the market goes heavily risk-off.
Amid high volatility in the currency market, businesses should use hedging tools such as options to manage risks, he added.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index is expected to fluctuate between 1,670 and 1,690 points on Friday due to a lack of positive sentiment, Krungsri Securities said.
It added that the index would be under pressure due to uncertainty over the US Federal Reserve’s move to shrink its balance sheet and raise the interest rate to curb inflation, as well as a lack of progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks.
Meanwhile, foreign fund outflows both in stocks and futures markets would pressure the index,” Krungsri Securities said. “Hence we advise investors to buy shares which have gained specific positive sentiment.”
It recommends the purchase of the following as an investment strategy:
• GPSC, BGRIM, SCGP, SCC and EPG would benefit from the falling oil price.
• AOT, AAV, BA, MINT, CENTEL, ERW, CPN, CRC, HMPRO, CPALL, MAKRO, AMATA and WHA would benefit from countries reopening.
• BDMS, BH, INTUCH, ADVANC, BTS and BEM, which can tolerate market volatility.
The SET Index closed at 1,682.41 on Thursday, down 18.77 points or 1.10 per cent. Transactions totalled 97.09 billion baht with an index high of 1,694.23 and a low of 1,674.81.
Total spending over next week’s Songkran holiday could fall to the lowest in a decade, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) warns.
Spending on travel, goods and services over Songkran will pump about 106.7 billion baht into the economy, down 5.4 per cent from the same period last year, according to a UTCC survey.
“Compared to the Songkran festival in 2019, before the Covid-19 situation, the estimated cash flow this year is down 21.4 per cent and could be the lowest in the past 10 years,” said Thanawat Pholwichai, director of the UTCC Centre for Economy and Business Forecasting on Thursday.
The survey showed that 64 per cent of respondents were worried about rising living costs as prices of products and fuel increase. They said this would prompt them to save up money instead of indulging in spending sprees during the holiday.
“45.1 per cent of respondents said they expected to spend less on Songkran this year compared to the previous year,” Thanawat added.
The UTCC estimates the Thai economy will grow 3-4 per cent this year, higher than estimates made by other institutes. It cited a gradual return to normality as people learned to live with Covid-19 due to the milder symptoms and lower death rate of the Omicron variant.
“Also, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war will start to ease from the second quarter, after which Thailand’s exports are expected to grow 4-5 per cent due to rising global demand,” Thanawat said.
Other factors pushing economic expansion this year include the government’s easing of restrictions on foreign arrivals to boost tourism, and economic stimulus campaigns such as the “Let’s Go Halves” spending programme, phase 5 of which is expected to start in June and generate 45 billion baht in cash flow to the economy.
On fuel, the centre said the oil price will have no significant effect on the Thai economy if it does not exceed US$100 per barrel. The UTCC is confident the oil price will remain below that mark this year, after the United States last week announced it was releasing 1 million barrels per day from its reserve over the next six months to make up for the loss of Russian oil from global markets amid the Ukraine conflict.
The Board of Investment (BoI) has eased its terms for investment incentives in the electric vehicle (EV) charging business to help small operators or start-ups better access BoI benefits, secretary-general Duangjai Asawachintachit said on Thursday.
She said that with increased start-up participation, the ecosystem and infrastructure for EVs in Thailand would be expanded, which is necessary to build the confidence of prospective EV users.
The BoI’s executive board resolved at its meeting on Thursday to offer a five-year exemption from corporate tax to investors of EV charging stations, with at least 40 chargers and no less than 25 per cent of them delivering quick-charge services.
Investors who do not meet the requirements are entitled to a three-year exemption from corporate tax, according to Duangjai.
Also, the BoI decided to drop a requirement for the ISO 18000 international standard for radio frequency identification (RFID) and a term that eligible investors must not seek investment privileges from any other state agency.
However, investors seeking BoI benefits are required to connect their charging stations with an integrated central platform that manages the country’s charging station network. This is aimed at creating an ecosystem for EVs and charging stations, the BoI chief said.
Between January and March this year, BoI received applications for 378 investment projects worth a total of THB110.7 billion. The amount was down by 6 per cent when compared to the same period last year.
However, projects with foreign direct investment that sought BoI privileges totalled THB77.2 billion in the first quarter, a 29 per cent increase from the same period last year.
Most of the investments are from Taiwan (THB37.1 billion), followed by Japan (13.8 billion) and China (13.3 billion).
Most applications for BoI benefits came from the automobiles and parts industry, agricultural products and processed foods, electric appliances, and electronic products.
Meanwhile, projects worth THB60.3 billion have sought investment privileges in the Eastern Economic Corridor covering Rayong, Chonburi and Chachoengsao, according to the BoI.
They include projects that require advanced technologies in production, hard-disk drive suspension, multilayer printed circuit boards, multilayer ceramic chip capacitors, and fibre optics equipment.
The baht opened at 33.58 to the US dollar on Thursday, weakening from Tuesday’s close of 33.43.
Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool predicted the Thai currency would move between 33.50 and 33.70 during the day.
Poon said the baht might swing sideways in a wide range. The currency may weaken during the day as the dollar strengthens due to market worries surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war and the US Federal Reserve’s move to implement tighter monetary policies. Moreover, the Covid-19 situation in China has also affected investment in Asia, he pointed out.
Additionally, the baht might fluctuate as the European Central Bank (ECB) holds a key meeting. If the ECB signals that it will increase the interest rate, the euro might strengthen and pressure the dollar into weakening.
Poon advised a close watch on foreign transactions. He expected foreign investors to continue purchasing Thai assets, which would support the baht and keep it from weakening further during this period.
Poon said the baht’s resistance level would be 33.70, at which point exporters would offload the dollar. Meanwhile the key support level is 33.20, which would spur importers to purchase dollars.
Amid high volatility in the currency market, businesses should use hedging tools such as options to manage risks, he added.
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