Chief executive Somporn Vongvuthipornchai said PTTEP Australasia (Ashmore Cartier) Pty Ltd had agreed to sell its stake in the Montara field to Jadestone Energy (Eagle) Pty Ltd for US$195 million.

The amount is to be adjusted for working capital spent until the date of transaction, expected this year.

PTTEP will also have additional contingency consideration amounts of up to $160 million depending on production, oil price and future development milestones being achieved.

Completion of the sale is subject to the sale and purchase agreement, including Australian regulatory approvals from the National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator and the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority.

“The sale of the Montara field is in alignment with our strategic direction in increasing investments in our focused areas in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, where we have experience and expertise,” Somporn said.

“These areas have high petroleum potential, low-cost structure and low risks that will help us add more petroleum reserves and enhance long-term growth for the company.”

The Montara field is off Australia. The average production volume in the first half of this year averaged 7,694 barrels per day.

The pre-series C investment for Eatigo comes as TripAdvisor’s restaurant business unit and its subsidiary, The Fork, look to help expand Eatigo’s presence and services across the Asia-Pacific region.

On the heels of a successful entry into Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia and India in 2017, Eatigo will use the funds to launch in several more markets and extend its product offering.

“Eatigo is excited to continue its strong relationship and collaboration with TripAdvisor,” said chief executive and co-founder Michael Cluzel.

“These new funds will be integral in allowing Eatigo to consolidate and extend the reach of our leadership and expertise in helping customers reserve the perfect table.”

The Chinese telecoms giant and smartphone manufacturer is seeing continued growth in Thailand, its third largest market in the Southeast Asian region.

Thailand is the most active most active enterprise market with ongoing two-digit growth per year continuously, says William Wang, vice president of Enterprise Service Department Southeast Asia (SEA) Region at Huawei Enterprise Business Group, Huawei Technologies (Thailand).

The firm provides various enterprise services and solutions, such as cloud computing, big data, Internet of things (IoT), and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions.

“We work together with partners to provide innovative solutions, platforms and ecosystems to support enterprises who want to [undergo] digital transformation to achieve business success,” said Wang.

To drive the enterprise market, the firm held an ecosystem summit that leveraged knowledge transfer among core partners. The Huawei Southern East Asia Enterprise Service Ecosystem Summit aimed to help its partners in Thailand, Hong Kong and India, to better address the various challenges their customers face during their digital transformations.

The firm also introduced its service cooperation strategies and support platforms to the company’s partners in the SEA region.

The firm supports over 1,000 partners in the region with more than 400 partners based in Thailand. It works with partners to build an open, flexible, elastic and secure platform to support five key industries – public safety, transportation, energy, finance and manufacturing.

Huawei Enterprise Group is projecting worldwide revenues of US$10 billion (Bt318.69 billion) by the end of this year, a 30 per cent growth over last year

The enterprise division will enhance its various domains in 2018, including cloud computing, big data, campus networks, data centres, and Internet of thing (IoT). With full-stack solutions across devices, networks and the cloud, Huawei will work with partners to meet customers requirements, says Wang.

Salinla Seehaphan, corporate affairs director at Tesco Lotus, said that across the Tesco Group one of its three values is “every little act of help makes a big difference.”

“Our belief is that small actions can add up to make a big difference and that the way we run our business can make a positive contribution to our colleagues, our customers, our communities, as well as the environment,” said Salinla.

“Based on these values, we have set the ‘Little Helps Plan’, which guides us to do our business in a sustainable way. It comprises three core areas – people, products, and place. These pillars are underpinned by foundation principles such as a clear commitment to minimise our environmental impact.”

On the people front, Salinla says that in Thailand, Tesco Lotus employs more than 50,000 workers, including part-time students, who work together to serve customers every day in nearly 2,000 stores nationwide.

“We are committed to making Tesco Lotus a great place to work, offering colleagues opportunities to get on in their career as well as personal fulfilment,” said Salinla.

Regarding products, Salinla said the company is committed to ensuring that it offers quality, healthy, and sustainable food products to customers at affordable prices.

“Under the products pillar, there are three key aspects that we focus our efforts on,” said Salinla. “The first of concerns sourcing. We work closely with local farmers in our direct sourcing programme to make sure that the food they grow and produce for us meet safety and quality standards.

“The direct sourcing programme – which we have been carrying out since 2010 – helps to provide a fair and sustainable source of income for local farmers and SMEs across Thailand.

“In addition to providing a distribution channel through our stores and online shopping platforms, we help to grow their capabilities in modern and sustainable farm management.”

She said the second dimension concerns health.

“Our goal is to help make it easier for customers to live a healthier lifestyle. We have introduced a variety of healthier choices including low sugar carbonated soft drinks, trans fat-free bakery, low-glycaemic index rice, in addition to fresh fruits and vegetables,” said Salinla.

“Tesco Lotus was the first retailer in Thailand to eliminate trans fat from all of our bakery products, which are now available at all hypermarkets and Express stores nationwide, allowing customers to have access to healthier choices while still maintaining great taste and affordable prices.”

The third element involves the company’s approach to food waste.

“Tesco Lotus believes that food that is fit for human consumption should not go to waste,” Salinla said. “Using the farm to fork approach, we work to minimise food losses and waste within our own operation. Through our direct sourcing programme, we work with farmers on crop planning to ensure they grow what our customers want, minimising surplus crops, which lead to waste and low crop prices.

“We use state-of-the-art technology in our distribution system to ensure food stays fresh for longer. We implement a system called ‘Reduced to Clear’ to incrementally mark down the prices of products throughout the day to entice customers to buy. What is left at the end of the day is donated to local charities.”

Salinla said that all Tesco Lotus hypermarkets in Bangkok and hypermarket in major cities are now donating edible surplus food, having contributed so far to around 1.3 million meals to people in need. Inedible food is also turned into bio-fertilisers and animal feeds.

Regarding the places pillar, she said: “Our goal is to help our local communities thrive by positively contributing both socially and economically. In Thailand, we carry out our food donation programme to provide nutritious and healthy lunches to local schools.

“During the back to school trading period in April and May this year, we ran a campaign in which customers were invited to take part in donating food to needy children in the 10 poorest provinces in Thailand throughout the entire semester. Local schools come to Tesco Lotus to pick up fresh food and dry groceries on a weekly basis, helping them to have quality ingredients with which to cook for the students.”

Salinla said that in the most recent instance of help, Tesco Lotus workers from the Mae Sai store “provided little helps to the rescue operation of the youth football team from the Tham Luang cave, located just five kilometres from the store”.

“From day one, we provided daily supplies to the joint rescue operation including food, water, and other necessary equipment, until after the team had been rescued successfully from the flooded cave system,” she said.

She said the policies that underpin the three key pillars involve other important aspects including climate change. To combat climate change, Tesco Group’s ambition is that 100 per cent of its electricity will come from renewable sources by 2030.

“In Thailand, we have invested in solar generation, installing solar panels on the roofs of 13 hypermarkets and distribution centres,” said Salinla. “We have also been running a reward programme to encourage customers to refuse plastic bags. For the past five years, we have been able to save more than 100 million bags and rewarded more than 3 billion green points to our customers. For the period from July to December 31, 2018, we have increased the amount of green points rewarded by five times from 20 to 100 points, intensifying our programme to remove more plastic bags from the system.”

Regarding to the CSR campaigns, Salinla said, Tesco Lotus has identified targets and actions in each of these three pillars.

“For food waste, Tesco Group’s commitment is to halve food waste farm to fork by 2030, in line with SDG target 12.3 to halve per capita food waste at the retail and consumer level and reducing food losses along production and supply chains until 2030,” she said.

“In 2013, Tesco was the first retailer in the UK to measure and publish food waste data for the UK operations. Tesco in Central Europe has also begun tracking and publishing food waste data, with Thailand and Malaysia following suit.”

She said that the Little Helps Plan has been incorporated into the company’s business strategies.

“We believe that sustainability is crucial to our operating model and the long-term success of our business.” Salinla said.

The retailer’s people director, Aurakanda Attavipach, said that as business continues to grow amid the changes to the business scene as well as the changing needs of today’s workforce, Tesco Lotus has adjusted its employee development programme to cater to such changes.

“When it comes to learning and personal development, we have found that the 4.0 era workforce looks for these three things: personalisation, ownership, and flexibility,” said Aurakanda.

“At the same time, our own business is required to be agile and quick to respond. With these demands in mind, we have joined forces with the four universities – Chulalongkorn University, Chiang Mai University, Khon Kaen University, and Prince of Songkhla University – to develop a personalised learning programme for Tesco Lotus colleagues nationwide.”

The Learning Dollars Programme provides workers with the flexibility to choose from an extensive range of courses including a Micro MBA and e-learning options. Eligible workers receive a set amount of “learning dollars” that they can choose to spend on courses that appeal to them, giving them ownership of their own career and personal development plans, as well as the personalised offer, said Aurakanda.

“The Learning Dollars Programme, since we launched it in collaboration with Chulalongkorn University three years ago, has been extremely successful, with demand being three to four times higher than the supply. In order to extend similar opportunities to Tesco Lotus colleagues located nationwide, we have expanded our collaboration to include leading regional universities,” she said.

Tesco Lotus has worked very closely with the universities to develop courses that aren’t only beneficial to career advancement, but also personal development.

The Micro MBA programme requires two years, while a variety of other courses ranging from Mind Mapping to Appreciative Inquiry are also available in addition to the core curriculum. Tesco Lotus has also developed an e-learning platform with Chulalongkorn University to facilitate “anywhere anytime learning”.

“As an employer of more than 50,000 people in Thailand, we believe that providing capability development opportunities for our colleagues will not only benefit them and the organisation, but also Thailand’s workforce as a whole,” Aurakanda said.

“We believe that learning is a lifelong endeavour, and what’s relevant today may not be so tomorrow. That’s why we continually adjust and readjust our colleague development programme to suit the needs of the 4.0 era workforce and organisations, so both can achieve sustainable growth.”

“In 2015, Thailand was moving towards the digital world but DTAC was not very digital. So we started DTAC’s digital transformation to make ourselves more relevant to customers. And it’s a different company now,” Norling said.

“As part of its digital transformation, DTAC has utilised machine learning to make better recommendations to its customers and also to answer customer queries via SMS more quickly. We also have agile teams that develop new products in rapid, two-week sprints. A lot has changed.”

The company’s financial performance is also quite different, Norling said. “We had negative growth in 2015. Now we’ve really improved and gone back to growth. Thanks to our digital transformation, that growth should continue over time,” he said.

The company has also implemented what it calls a strengths-based development programme for its employees. The system will encourage managers to coach employees on their strengths, and supports the company’s digital transformation to a more project-based way of work.

Late last year DTAC said it needs to recuit hundreds of skilled digital workers by 2020 to fulfil its goal of becoming a leading digital organisation.

The Swedish national assumed the CEO post at DTAC in April 2015. Previously, he was chief executive of DiGi.Com Berhad in Malaysia and, earlier, held the same role at Telenor Sweden.

Norway’s giant telecom operator Telenor is DTAC’s foreign strategic partner.

On March this year, DTAC announced Norling’s decision to step down from his CEO post to pursue new opportunities. He will remain in his current role until September 1. Norling will be replaced by Alexandra Reich, an Austrian, who currently serves as CEO of Telenor Hungary and head of Telenor Group’s Central-Eastern Europe cluster.

“I will join Kinnevik as an investment director. Kinnevik is a Swedish investment company with telecom, media and digital assets,” Norling said. “The purpose of Kinnevik is to build digital businesses that provide more and better choices for customers. This is achieved by using digital technology in combination with a strong entrepreneurial spirit.”

Norling said that what has impressed him the most about Thailand as an individual and as the

CEO of a telecom business is how tech-savvy Thai consumers are. He said that they are highly advanced in terms of their digital usage and consumption.

“Thailand is among the top nations in terms of YouTube watch times, Facebook penetration and Line Mobile users,” Norling said.

“Thais use 8GB [gigabytes] of mobile data per month. That’s double the European averages. It also means Thais are very demanding in terms of network quality. There are

countries in Europe that have much less coverage and density than we do here”.

According to a global digital report in early 2018 by We Are Social (www.wearesocial.com), Thailand is one of the world leaders in high-speed mobile Internet daily usage. The analysis of the mobile Internet usage behaviour of Thai people shows that they consume the most and second-most data on chat app and video, respectively. Thailand is also one of the top countries for YouTube viewing times.

He is also impressed with the dynamism of Thai society. He said the situation in Thailand’s market is very fluid, with change happening quickly. A few years ago, Europeans were using data on 4G wireless broadband technology for data and Thais were still using voice. Today, Thais have outpaced them in data consumption.

“On a personal level, I love working with Thai people. There are a lot of very smart, competent people here. But I also like that people are empathetic, easy to work with and friendly,” Norling added.

When taking the top job at DTAC, he said that it was not difficult for him to adjust to the environment in Thailand.

“I had travelled a lot before coming here. I studied in Sweden, both in Upsala and Gothenburg, but also in the USA. That really developed my taste for always being on the move,” he said.

“I also worked in South Africa and Taiwan before joining Telenor Sweden. Before coming to DTAC, I worked for a year in Malaysia, with which there are some regional similarities.

“The Swedish and Thai cultures also have some things in common. Swedes believe in consensus. We don’t polarise. We’re not confrontational. I’d say the two cultures are a pretty good match.”

Of course, he and his American wife and two kids, who moved to live with him in Thailand, miss friends and family in Sweden sometimes, and they visit them in Sweden twice a year. His son, 14, and his daughter, 11, speak English and Swedish fluently.

“The food we most miss from Sweden would have been Swedish meatballs but then we’ve figured out how to make some pretty tasty Swedish meatballs at home. When we go back to Sweden, we’ll all miss the pad Thai, though,” he said.

Norling describes himself as “a bit impatient and someone who likes new challenges, new experiences”.

“If it’s too much of the same thing, I get bored. I’m also pretty curious.

That’s why digital transformation has been so exciting for me,” he said. “I’d also like to think I’m sincere and trustworthy.”

As a manager, his key strengths are strategy and execution. He can both set a clear direction and get stuff done. He is also good at managing complexity, creating some order out of chaos.

Norling once said that the only way to beat the competition is to perform better than the competitors. He is very focused on execution, to get the job done. Planning is also important but it is only 20 per cent – 80 per cent is execution.

“Living in Thailand, I’ve mellowed out a bit and learned to be more patient. Sometimes, you just have to take things day by day here. It can be a very unpredictable business environment,” Norling said.

He said that DTAC’s greatest challenge is the end of its concession on the 850MHz and 1800 MHz spectra in the middle of September and the uncertainty surrounding that.

“But we’re taking all the necessary steps to ensure continuity of service for all our customers. And once the DTAC Turbo [wireless broadband service] reaches them, they will enjoy a very smooth, fast and reliable network experience,” he said.

CAT Telecom has granted the 1800MHz and 850MHz bands to DTAC to operate under its concession.

After the concession expiration, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission will put both spectrum bands up for auction in August.

The company kicked off the DTAC Turbo service in some major provinces in June. It launched the service under a partnership with TOT, using the state agency’s 2.3GHz spectrum.

In June, DTAC’s chief technology officer, Prathet Tankuranun, said that the DTAC Turbo’s 4G-Time Division Duplex (TDD) network coverage is expected to cover 37 provinces this year, with more provinces added later.

Norling said that with DTAC Turbo, the company became the first operator to bring 4G-TDD services to Thailand, which has put DTAC on an evolutionary path to the advent of 5G services.

“That’s why DTAC is so interesting. We’re part of a changing society. We’re in the middle of the change and empowering that change,” he said.

He added that he wants to use

technology to make a difference for society and for people.

“That’s what’s driving me. That’s why I started a fibre to the home broadband company in Sweden. Internet was terrible there. And I wanted better Internet at my home, too! Then the company was sold to Telenor and I joined Telenor Sweden,” he said.

During his spare time, Norling exercises almost every day.

“I also try to combine watching Netflix while running or cycling. Of course, I’ve travelled all over Thailand to meet DTAC teams. But Krabi and Phuket are where I head to most often when I want a break,” he said.

“I also read a lot. I just finished “Homo Deus, a Brief History of Tomorrow.” It’s a great read, if a bit scary at times. It demonstrates how belief systems allow humans to form complex societies. But it also questions what will happen when we succeed in creating machines smarter than ourselves,” he said.

When asked what he plans to tell DTAC staff when it comes time to bid them farewell and what will be his recommendation to his successor, he said he would tell Reich that DTAC’s digital transformation is well under way, so he thinks she will be able to really focus on growth.

For DTAC staff, Norling will encourage them to keep building on the company’s well-known “Jai Dee” market position [jai dee in Thai means kind heart], keep growing, co-operating and innovating with the new DTAC culture.

“And I’ll also tell them I will miss DTAC employees very much, and all of Thailand as well,” he said.

More than 200 volunteer runners, led by Yo-Yossavadee Hassadeevichit, captain of Adidas Runners Bangkok, and two celebrities, Pancake-Khemanit Jamikorn and Grace-Karnklao Duaysianklao, participated to raise awareness of the importance of keeping the coastline pollution-free.

Vijay Chauhan, Adidas general manager, said: “Our oceans and marine life are endangered by plastic waste. Through the power of sport, we believe we can help alleviate the problem in a tangible way.

“For this reason, Adidas and Parley for the Oceans are uniting in raising awareness of the threat from marine plastic waste.

“In addition, we have been following Adidas’s global sustainability policy by removing plastic shopping bags in stores since Earth Day 2016 and reducing plastic bottle usage in our general activities.”

Launched in June 2017 with the objective of using the power of sport to raise awareness of marine plastic pollution, Run For The Oceans engages more runners around the world to help save the oceans, including through the Runtastic application.

“Thailand dumps 13 million tonnes of plastic into the sea each year, placing the country in the top six worst offenders globally. This is an opportunity for us to make a difference through the power of sport,” Chauhan said.

Bangchak CEO Chaiwat Kovavisarach said only the Galoc crude oil reserves that are in operation are involved, while other petroleum sources under exploration and development are still owned by Bangchak subsidiaries.

The teachers participated in several science, technology, engineering and maths activities during the five-day programme.

Honeywell Hometown Solutions aims to inspire middle-school science and maths teachers to promote science, technology, engineering and maths.

It said more than 3,000 teachers had attended the Hesa programme, teaching more than 5 million students around the world.

“We’re thrilled to continue our long partnership with Honeywell to bring teachers to learn and grow at our facility in Alabama,” said Dr Deborah Barnhart, CEO at USSRC. “The opportunity to help these teachers ignite their students’ passion in space, science and technology is one we at USSRC look forward to each year.”

The teachers attend 45 hours of classroom and laboratory instruction focused on science, space exploration and leadership skills development, including coding challenges. The teachers join a network of peers from around the world to continue collaborating and developing their educational goals.

The aluminium handset joins the Android One family, endorsed by Google.

The Nokia 3.1 boasts an anodised machined metal frame and sculpted glass display.

Tanadet Chuangkeavisedd of HMD Global said: “The Nokia 3 has been an extremely successful part of the Nokia smartphone line-up in Thailand. With so many people enjoying it every day, we’ve had a tremendous amount of positive feedback and a real motivation to refine our fans’ experience even further.

“We’ve made sure New Nokia 3.1 delivers the perfect balance between power and design so our customers do not need to compromise.”