Deputy Prime Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan on Wednesday (August 10) presided over the opening ceremony of the activities to celebrate the 90th birthday of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit the Queen Mother on August 12, 2022 at Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden in Chiang Mai’s Mae Rim district.
The activities were organised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment with the main highlight being the exhibition “90th Anniversary of the Mother of Biodiversity Protection,” which will run until the end of the year to celebrate HM Queen Sirikit’s works and to promote public awareness in natural resource conservation.
During the opening ceremony on Wednesday, Prawit was welcomed by Natural Resources and Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa, ministry permanent secretary Jatuporn Buruspat, and Chiang Mai deputy governor Worawit Chaisawat.
Varawut said that he has tasked all agencies under the ministry to organise activities to celebrate the Queen Mother’s birthday at 44 locations nationwide. The project aims to show appreciation to royally initiative projects that have helped conserve the country’s natural resources and biodiversity, as well as to boost public awareness and participation in natural resource conservation and rehabilitation of Thailand’s biodiversity and ecosystem.
He added that the exhibition “90th Anniversary of the Mother of Biodiversity Protection” will feature Her Majesty Queen Sirikit’s biography, her royal projects in the fields of natural resources and environment, and her travel both in Thailand and overseas, including her nine visits to the botanic garden. Visitors will also learn about attractions within the botanic garden from this exhibition, including the greenhouse complex, the museum of natural history, the Canopy Walks nature trail and dinosaur statutes.
Prayudh Mahagitsiri carried out the auspicious ceremony of worship and held Buddhist prayers to commemorate the opening of Teak Carbon Co., Ltd. in Petchaboon province. His aim is to encourage more green areas in Thailand thereby caring for the environment and simultaneously entering the teak business by exporting teak products in the near future.
At 9:48am on the 9th of August 2022, Mr. Prayudh Mahagitsiri Chairman of PM Group Company Limited and a major shareholder of Teak Carbon Co., Ltd. together with his family carried out the auspicious ceremony of worship at the Teak Carbon plantation that is located in Vichienburi, Petchaboon province. The ceremony was to bring good luck and prosperity to the company. It was attended by many local and VIP guests including the district chief of Vichienburi and former Governor of Bangkok.
After the ceremony, Prayudh and his family planted teak saplings to mark the opening of the new company. Prayudh, a farsighted magnate and industrialist also encouraged the Thai people to plant one tree each, hence 70 million trees would be planted.
The total area of the plantation covers approximately 2,750 rai (approx.1,100 acres) and most of the trees are over 30 years old. In total there are around 150,000 teak trees but many more will be planted soon.
Prayudh Mahagitsiri said that he saw the importance of the Teak Carbon plantation and reforestation was the best way to deal with environmental, climate change issues and it was the best way to go green. Furthermore, the teak trees were part of the first phase of the future teak business.
He also mentioned that teak trees are very valuable and hard to find and at the plantation they would be planting teak trees consistently, so that people would be aware that the best teak is available in Thailand. In fact, 75% of the teak available in Thailand is ‘golden teak’, whereas its neighboring countries only have around 25% of ‘golden teak’. He shared that the longest-living teak tree in the world is in Uttaradit and is over 1500 years old, so this was a clear sign that the best teak is and has been available in Thailand for a long time.
Prayudh Mahagitsiri shared his vision about teak plantation, Teak Carbon Co., Ltd. “The plan is to expand the project to 3,500 rai (approx.1,400 acres) and then to 5,000 rai. (approx. 2,000 acres)”
TTCL joins hands with Blackwood Technology, investing in prototype plant for biomass pellet with FlashTor® innovation for the first time in Thailand.
Nishida Kazuya, Ambassador of Japan to Thailand, presided over the opening ceremony of the biomass pellet prototype plant with “FlashTor®” innovation for the first time in Thailand.
Hironobu Iriya, Chief Executive Officer and President of TTCL PCL., and Maarten Herrebrugh, Chief Executive Officer of Blackwood Technology, welcomed the Ambassador, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Natural Resource and Environment, partner organizations, and customer groups.
This prototype plant was developed to produce and enhance the quality of biomass pellet fuels in Thailand with a torrefaction process called FlashTor®, patented by Blackwood Technology.
This is another effort to improve the quality of biomass pellets produced in Thailand and promote clean energy production from agricultural waste.
By reducing the use of coal and fossil fuels, the new technology will help strengthen the competitiveness of the Thai business sector with green production and low-carbon products.
Bangkok, August 11, 2022 – Bitkub Chain, the blockchain infrastructure developed by Bitkub Blockchain Technology Co., Ltd., with an aim to be an infrastructure of Thai blockchain ecosystem by allowing anyone to interact with decentralized applications, has been operating for 1 year since April 28, 2022. Now, Bitkub Chain has already achieved 1 million users of Bitkub NEXT *(recently updated on August 10, 2022).
Bitkub NEXT is the digital asset wallet developed by Bitkub Blockchain Technology Co., Ltd., launched on May 7, 2022. It is an important function to interact with decentralized applications (DApp). Bitkub NEXT can be used globally from 80 countries worldwide via web browsers and android application, whereas IOS application will be launched soon according to the roadmap.
In the past 1 year, there were several functions built on Bitkub NEXT, as follows:
Digital Asset Wallet on Bitkub Chain
Bitkub NEXT’s main function is to use as digital wallet to keep digital token and NFTs (non-fungible token) operating on Bitkub Chain such as Bitkub Coin (KUB), FANS Token, KUSDT, KUSDC, KBTC, Popcoin, YES Token, Lumi, Token from Morning Moon Village, Fans Dungeon and Dice Kingdom games. For NFTs, it will be compatible with Bitkub Chain’s partners projects badge (Registered, Verified and Official).
KUB Coin Lock & Drop
According to Bitkub Chain Whitepaper V2.2, KUB Coin holders can enjoy rewards through Bitkub NEXT. Lock & Drop feature allows KUB holders to lock their KUB Coin within a certain period of time and earn various digital asset wallet, as well as other lifestyle rewards from partners. On June 27, 2022, Bitkub Chain announced “KUB On The Rock” package to allow users to lock KUB and get bonus as KBTC and KUSDT.
Security Improvement with KYC (Know Your Customer) feature
Bitkub NEXT was designed and tested with high-standard of technology for security improvement. KYC (Know Your Customer) feature was launched on July 8, 2022, offering a protection against anonymous parties who wish to harm users’ assets.
Platform and DApp Connection on Bitkub Chain
Bitkub NEXT’s main function is to interact with decentralized application (DApp) on Bitkub Chain. The users can use Bitkub NEXT to connect with decentralized application (DApp) such as Bitkub NFT, Bitkub Chain Bridge, Morning Moon Village, KUB Name Service and any other projects as well.
Other Features
In addition, the users can use other features on Bitkub NEXT as follows 1. Set and remove profile picture with NFT 2. Transfer digital asset (both coin and NFT) 3. Transfer KUB to Bitkub Exchange
Thailand topped the list of rubber exporting countries in the first half of the year, with shipments of 2.19 million tonnes valued at 70.5 billion baht, the agriculture minister’s adviser revealed on Friday.
This year’s total exports of natural rubber are expected to reach 4.27 million tonnes, up 3.41 per cent from last year, said Alongkorn Ponlaboot, citing the Rubber Authority of Thailand.
In the first half, Thailand exported 167.2 billion baht of natural rubber and rubber products, he added.
Almost half (49 per cent) of the exports went to China, which is the largest market for Thailand’s rubber and rubber products, said Democrat Party deputy leader Alongkorn, who also chairs the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry’s committee monitoring rubber prices.
Between January and June, China imported 1.42 million tonnes of natural and synthetic rubber from Thailand, up 5.37 per cent from last year.
Malaysia was second on the list with 10 per cent, followed by the United States (7 per cent), Japan (6 per cent), and South Korea (4 per cent).
The Rubber Authority of Thailand estimates Thai rubber production this year will total 4.79 million tonnes, up 0.88 per cent from last year, he added.
Alongkorn on Thursday chaired an online meeting on the situation in the global rubber market. Also attending were senior officials from the Rubber Authority, Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, Commerce Ministry, and Thai agriculture attachés from across the world.
The National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) reckons the Thai economy can be affected by three scenarios taking into account the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and other geopolitical conflicts.
The first and most probable scenario, NESDC Deputy Secretary-General Wichayayuth Boonchit said, is if the Russia-Ukraine war continues, but the global oil supply is not affected by sanctions against Russia. In this case, Thailand’s economy should expand between 2.5 and 3.5 per cent this year. Thailand’s GDP currently stands at 1.6 per cent, according to the World Bank.
“Thailand’s inflation should drop slightly in 2023, while the current account will build up gradually,” he said.
He also expects the global economy to expand this year before slowing down next year based on the interest rate directions and the cycle of major economies. He believes the global economy should start to recover after 2023.
In the second, but less probable scenario, Wichayayuth said, Thailand’s economy will grow less than expected in 2022-2023 if more sanctions are slapped on Russia. This will result in a surge in the global price of oil and other products.
“The inflation this year will be higher than in the first scenario before declining,” he said, adding that the current account will have a higher surplus than in the first scenario.
He also expects the global economy to grow at a lower level next year depending on the types of sanctions. He added that economies in Europe, the UK and the US face the risk of recession.
The third and worst scenario is if a conflict is sparked between the US and China. Wichayayuth said this conflict will spark a global economic recession depending on the intensity of this and other geopolitical conflicts.
Should a US-China conflict arise, it will push up the price of fuel, food and consumer goods and even trigger shortages.
“Thailand’s inflation will remain high, with the current account balance in deficit,” he said.
Global supply chains remain disrupted as the Covid-19 pandemic enters the third year and the crisis in Europe creates chaos in Europe-Asia transportation.
Expert Mark Millar said the disturbance offers companies an opportunity to reevaluate their sourcing and production, considering a more regional approach going forward.
He also expects global supply chain reconfiguration to last through 2025 to 2030, with some businesses nearshoring and reshoring.
Millar is an internationally known industry expert in logistics and supply chain strategies with over 30 years of global business experience.
He is a renowned keynote speaker and author of Global Supply Chain Ecosystems.
He will deliver a keynote speech at a webinar hosted by DIGITIMES Asia on August 25: From Long Chains to Short Chains: Reforming Global Supply Chains in the Post-Pandemic Era.
According to Millar, much of the world is still experiencing vast supply chain chaos, while some regions are recovering. The more globalized supply chains are, the more prevalent the disruption gets.
However, the challenges companies face today differ from two years ago, especially with the ongoing conflict, which Millar described as a “black swan” event.
He said that during 2021, an additional one million cargo containers traveled by rail from the East, mainly China, to Western Europe due to the significant congestion in the sea freight shipping sector.
Most of those routes go through Russia and are not available now. Therefore, freight forwarders and logistics companies must find space for the containers on ships which are already full to capacity.
On a broader basis,the crisis in Europe has impacted the availability of oil and gas and increased energy prices. Millar said the situation has created a knock-on effect on the global transportation network serving supply chains.
More nearshoring and reshoring to come
What can companies do to tackle the challenges? While it is an overused term, Millar said collaboration among the supply chain partners is the practical way to get through the crisis in the short to mid-term.
The effort includes finding alternative sources or transportation routes that may be more expensive but can deliver the goods to the final destination.
On a medium-term basis, Millar said the disruption has created an opportunity for reevaluation after 30 years of globalization. For instance, companies might want to take a more regional approach in the future that would build more resilience into their supply chains and reduce emissions.
In fact, a movement of businesses reconfiguring their supply chains has started. Millar said some companies are looking at or implementing nearshoring, moving sourcing and production closer to the final destination market. Others are considering moving sourcing and production back into the final destination, which is reshoring, also known as on-shoring.
“We’ll see a movement towards a more regional approach to supply chains,” Millar said.
The expert added that in the European scenario, Poland, Turkey and even some North African countries with low-cost labour forces and are geographically close to Europe would all come into play as potential nearshoring locations.
Sourcing and production to remain strong in Asia
With all the nearshoring and reshoring coming, questions about whether reconfiguring supply chains would affect Asia’s, especially China’s, role as the manufacturing powerhouse have been raised.
Millar said due to multiple reasons, there will not be a mass exodus, only a proportion of production will be moved out of China or Asia. For example, some of the supply chains are so complex and fine-tuned that relocating them would be prohibitively expensive and risky.
Moreover, the majority of growth in the consumer class will continue to originate from Asia until at least 2030. Millar said the increase would almost make up for what would exit Asia for nearshoring.
Therefore, production and sourcing for supply chains in Asia will remain strong to serve the region.
Additionally, the China government has taken the dual circulation strategy to foster greater self-reliance for its economy. The policy will provide extra impetus to boost production within China.
Millar concluded that the real movement of reconfiguring global supply chains will become evident from 2025 to 2030. Besides nearshoring and reshoring, companies would concentrate supply chains in China for the products they sell locally – “In China for China”. Furthermore, the diversification around Asia would result in a China-Plus strategy, creating supply chains built in Asia for Asia.
Some CEOs and CFOs of major listed companies are now involved in the strategic decisions of supply chains, Millar said. Lots of executive boardroom discussions about future supply chain directions will be ongoing. The results will gradually unfold over the next five to 10 years.
“The global supply chain landscape in 2030 will be pretty different to what we’ve been used to for the last decade or so,” Millar added. Join DIGITIMES Supply Chain Webinar and discuss Supply Chain 2025, reflecting on Covid disruptions, and exploring how logistics sector dynamics and geopolitical will impact the future of post-pandemic Supply Chains
Grab Thailand, in response to the Ministry of Finance, announced its participation in the fifth phase of the co-payment scheme via its food delivery service in an effort to ease the impacts of the rising cost of living and stimulate spending during the economic slowdown.
To support restaurant operators joining the programme, Grab is offering a commission reduction to 9% throughout the two-month period and a wide range of benefits, namely cash loan of up to THB 100,000 with a daily repayment plan, delivery discounts and in-app advertising space.
Alejandro Osorio, Country Head of Grab Thailand, said, “To help stimulate Thailand’s economy and boost purchasing power, Grab has participated in the third and fourth phases of the government’s 50:50 co-payment scheme, which has been well-received by both users and merchant-partners. The maximum sales growth of restaurants joining phase four of the programme with GrabFood increased by 13 times. With an aim to lessen the financial burden of merchant partners and consumers during the highly volatile economic backdrop, Grab will be participating in the fifth phase of the 50:50 co-payment scheme, which targets a total of 26.5 million Thais (the package includes a total of THB 800 per recipient, no more than THB 150 per day), as well as providing comprehensive support to restaurant operators through benefit programs and marketing campaigns throughout the programme duration.”
For the fifth phase of the 50:50 co-payment scheme, Grab is offering various benefits to participating merchants, with details as follows:
Commission reduction for merchant-partners throughout the programme period: Restaurants registering between 17 – 19 August 2022 will receive a reduced commission rate of only 9%. In addition, merchants registering between 20 August – 31 October 2022 are still eligible to receive a commission reduction of 15%. This condition applies to orders made via the fifth phase of the co-payment scheme throughout the two-month period only (from 1 September – 31 October 2022)*.
Lending benefits to increase cash flow: Merchant partners who join the programme and have at least one-month transactions on the Grab platform with a minimum of THB 1,000 in monthly sales with GrabFood** are eligible to receive the quick cash loan with a daily repayment plan from Grab Financial Group. Grab also provides other special offerings, including a maximum credit limit of THB 100,000, a starting interest rate of 2.75% per month and a repayment period of up to six months.
Marketing and advertising support: To increase in-app visibility for merchants in the programme, Grab will provide a special in-app icon for 50:50 co-payment scheme restaurants. Additional benefit highlights aimed at boosting sales for merchants include a free delivery promotion throughout the programme period (available to GrabUnlimited package subscribers only) and many more.
Restaurants interested in participating in the fifth phase of the 50:50 co-payment scheme via GrabFood can apply for the programme from 17 August 2022 onwards. The instructions are as follows:
Access the GrabMerchant application
Click ‘Agree to Terms and Conditions in the What’s New section on the GrabMerchant application home page. Copy ‘Merchant Code’ from the merchant profile on the GrabMerchant application for the registration process on the Tung Ngern application and choose ‘GrabFood as the delivery platform.
Receive ‘Successful registration confirmation message’ in the GrabMerchant inbox on the next day.
As it celebrates its 75th Anniversary this year, Thai Wah Public Company Ltd (“TWPC”) delivered record sales in 1H2022 with a 19% increase in global sales and 5% increase in net profit.
As Southeast Asia’s leading Agri-Food platform, TWPC operates in 5 countries across 15 operations spanning a full product portfolio range of consumer food and food solution products, B2B starch and food ingredients as well as its new tapioca-bioplastic platform, ROSECO.
For the first half of 2022 – TWPC delivered strong sales growth across all segments of its business with significant performance coming from its core Food Business in Thailand and Vietnam registering high double-digit growth.
The launch of its new instant-vermicelli is now one of the fastest growing brands in Thailand this year, and sales in Vietnam will plan to double as the Company positions its product development strategy to develop a range of affordable, convenient and high-value consumer food products.
Ho Ren Hua, Chief Executive Officer, Thai Wah Public Company Limited (TWPC) said “Designing and developing a very strong globally balanced portfolio has been a key cornerstone of our overall strategy since Covid started in March 2020” noted CEO Ho Ren Hua.
“As one of the region’s few vertically integrated agri-food players from Farm to Shelf, we have been spending the last 3 years focusing on strengthening our entire value chain capabilities and localizing all our supply chain and sales capabilities into global markets. We continue to capitalize on this momentum going into a Post-Covid era with a strong demand for consumer staples and affordable food products,” he added.
A new series of ready-to-eat instant vermicelli products is now available across Thailand, and Song Long, its core flagship brand in Vietnam, is one of the fastest growing consumer noodle brands in the region.
For its B2B Starch and Ingredients Business – the Company continues its acceleration into high-value products, modified starches and organic tapioca now sourced from across the Southeast Asia region. Despite the Q2 lockdown in China, the Company continue to deliver strong volume growth despite supply chain disruptions, a testament to its deep sales and marketing capabilities across the Asia Pacific.
Looking towards 2025, Thai Wah plans to significantly increase sales across Asia Pacific by expanding both its production, distribution, and sales and marketing base from 15 to 20 locations, and continue to strengthen its operating capabilities in China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia.
The company has doubled in profit and revenue since 2017 and has launched more than 20 new products throughout the Covid period, catering to the global addressable market of food, starch, organic and sustainably sourced materials.
“Agriculture and Food are inherently a global business, and with the looming challenges in global food security and climate change, we have a big responsibility to serve our global customers faster and better from this part of the world. Over the last 6 months – our traction in global sales and marketing has accelerated dramatically, and we now serve some of the world’s leading global brands and customers. We are uniquely and completely plant-based from Farm to Shelf, and that resonates well with our global customers as a leading B2B Agri-Food company in Southeast Asia. We will continue to strengthen our entire Southeast Asia platform from Farm to Shelf,” said Ho.
In addition, Thai Wah will be aggressively investing in renewable energy – with a target of more than 50% using renewable energy sources by 2025 as part of its long-term commitment to reduce its carbon footprint towards net zero and be cost-efficient as a major player.
Earlier in 2022, it launched its first new business in sustainable packaging. ROSECO launched by Thai Wah, is the world’s first and leading tapioca-based platform in bioplastics and sustainable packaging with a leading role in tackling the global plastics and climate change challenge from Southeast Asia.
Google Cloud announced plans to open its first cloud region in Thailand, aiming to accelerate the country’s next stage of digital economic development.
This will be Google Cloud’s most significant infrastructure investment in Thailand to date to support its growing local customer base, including companies in regulated industries, said Ruma Balasubramanian, managing director, Google Cloud Southeast Asia during a press conference on Thursday in Bangkok.
She added that when launched, the Thailand cloud region will deliver high-performance and low-latency services to local organisations, with three zones offering protection against service disruptions.
Organisations will also benefit from key controls that allow them to maintain the highest security, data residency, and compliance standards, including specific data storage requirements, she said.
The cloud region will be complemented by Google Cloud’s existing Dedicated Cloud Interconnect locations in Bangkok, which provide direct connections between an organisation’s on-premises network and Google Cloud’s global network.
“Google Cloud aims to complement the government’s steadfast pursuit of infrastructure projects like the Eastern Economic Corridor and deliver the cloud foundation that more businesses need to transform and grow – whether it’s by maximising the use of data, enabling a hybrid workforce, or having the flexible platform to adapt to evolving market and regulatory conditions,” said Balasubramanian.
Google strongly believes that Thailand will become one of the world’s most competitive countries and the innovation engine of a digital economy in Southeast Asia that’s set to be worth 36.25 trillion baht by 2030, she added.
Meanwhile, AlphaBeta research commissioned by Google also found that if leveraged fully, cloud can create up to 2.5 trillion baht in annual economic value in Thailand by 2030. That amount is equivalent of 16 per cent of local GDP in 2020.
Although the region cloud is not yet ready for customer use, Balasubramanian assured that the company would stick to the timeline and would share more information in the coming months.
She did not reveal the amount of investment. She confirmed that the Thailand cloud region would be fully equipped, as with the other countries where Google has already established a Google cloud region.
The Thailand cloud region will join Google Cloud’s 11 existing regions across Asia Pacific and Japan, including two in Southeast Asia, which are in Singapore and Jakarta.
Globally, Google Cloud also recently announced plans to add cloud regions in New Zealand, Malaysia, and Mexico, which will join five regions already coming soon to Berlin, Dammam, Doha, Tel Aviv, and Turin.
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