As a key developing market for olive oil, Thailand was invited, with chef Nan Hongwiwat showcasing a fusion of Thai classics with an Italian twist. The chefs spent a week in Lucca, the town where Bertolli was founded in 1865, staying in a traditional 250-year-old farmhouse, while filming a TV series under the new Bertolli tagline, “The recipe is simple”. The event also coincided with the launch of new bottles, that will come to Thailand by August.

“Having Thailand represented at a global food event for an international product such as olive oil shows how well Thai food is regarded internationally. It was extremely interesting to learn about the olive-oil creation process, and to see where Bertolli first started,” said Nan.

Also attending were American YouTube star Laura Vitale, celebrity Indian chef Ranveer Brar, Finnish judge Sara La Fountain, Dutch food blogger Charlotte de Jong from Charlie’s Kitchen, nutritionist, author and chef from Australia Melanie Lionello, Bavarian blogger Ann-Christin Weber and Valentina Tozza, a blogger representing Italy.

The aircraft with the ANA logo already painted on the tail has moved to an outdoor station where structural completion, engine installation and cockpit furnishing will be done.

System testing for electric power, hydraulic power and air conditioning will be also conducted there.

The A380 will be equipped with an unusual configuration of eight First Class seats, 56 Business Class seats, 73 Premium Economy seats and 383 Economy Class seats, which includes 60 couches.

ANA Holdings Inc ordered three A380s in 2016, becoming the first Japanese customer for the superjumbo.

The first delivery is scheduled early next year and will initially ply the Tokyo-Honolulu route, featuring “Flying Honu” Hawaiian sea turtle livery, which symbolises good luck and prosperity.

The A380 is the world’s largest, most spacious airliner.

With two full, widebody decks, offering widest seats, wide aisles and more floor space, it can generate revenue, stimulate traffic and attract passengers.

The A380 will help to meet growth and overcome capacity constraints at airports in Tokyo.

Thirteen airlines currently operate 226 A380s at 60 destinations, and 240 airports can accommodate the A380.

The company reported a Bt14.10-billion increase in operating revenue, up Bt5.49 billion or 64 per cent from the preceding year.

The results were led by impressive performances in the mass transit business and VGI Global Media but were also supported by a gain of Bt1.88 billion from a property business restructuring.

“With these results, BTS Group has surpassed expectations,” Kavin said, referring to the company’s five-year guidance of net recurring profit to grow 25 per cent per annum on average.

The growth trajectory is expected to continue as “next year, we are expecting revenue growth of 200 per cent”, said Kavin.

The company has reaffirmed its 2017 position as Thailand’s leading rail mass transit system operator following the award of both the Pink and Yellow Line concessions and is expected to participate in the bidding process for all high-speed rail and electric rail systems concessions.

The media business seems set to surpass competition even further with an enviable media ecosystem and as pioneers of offline-to-online solutions.

Meanwhile new investments in Thailand and overseas will be the hallmark of its property business.

The mass transit business posted total revenue of Bt9.11 billion, increasing Bt4.87 billion or 115 per cent from the previous year.

The key drivers were organic growth and revenue from services related to the upcoming opening of the BTS Green Line Northern and Southern extensions.

The media unit earned Bt3.90 billion in revenue, an increase of Bt893 million or 30 per cent year-on-year, thanks to the thriving out-of-home and online media business segment.

Despite excluding recognition of real estate gains, the company’s net recurring profit still showed outstanding growth of 78 per cent, rising to 2.51 billion.

He said the company booked Bt20.17 billion in net profit, an increase of Bt17.20 billion or 581 per cent compared to the same period last year, which he credited to business performance and the divestment of three assets.

“The company disposed of its shares in East Water, GIDEC Co Ltd and Masinloc Power Plant in the Philippines and recognised total gains of Bt14.16 billion,” said Jakgrich.

“Those gains will prepare EGCO Group for expansion, both domestic and overseas, to generate a steady return in the long run.”

Progress has meanwhile been made on three overseas power projects in the pipeline – the Xayaburi and Nam Theun 1 dams in Laos and the San Buenaventura project in the Philippines.

They are scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2019 and 2022.

Jakgrich said EGCO Group is committed to sustainable growth this year and to a “steady and good return” of at least 10 per cent on shareholders’ equity.

He said the Company sees great opportunities for expansion overseas markets where it has a strong presence, primarily in the Philippines but also Laos and Indonesia.

The company is also exploring opportunities in other Asia-Pacific countries, especially in renewable energy, to increase its renewable portfolio to 30 per cent by 2026, said Jakgrich.

Its goal in turning to the EV business is to “make electric cars happen in Thailand” for the benefit of consumers, the company’s chief executive officer and president, Tevin Vongvanich, said last Wednesday.

Tevin said that for PTT, businesses relating to electric vehicles are an option as part of its growth strategy, in a world that is moving away from petroleum while shifting towards clean power from electricity.

He said the company was talking with a number of EV makers about this matter, including Germany’s BMW.

“Things should be clear by the end of the year,” the PTT boss told Thai media on a trip to learn about EV technologies in Germany.

He said PTT does not need to become an EV manufacturer itself. Instead, it can become an EV dealer in Thailand and produce batteries for these vehicles. Regarding the battery manufacturing, he said a joint venture involving PTT “can be seen later this year”.

In addition to making batteries for electric cars and becoming an EV dealership, PTT will also provide charging services for EVs at its service stations, Tevin said.

The planned electric-car dealership and battery production for EVs are part of PTT’s medium-term strategy for expansion that would focus on electricity and liquefied natural gas (LNG) value chains, regional growth, and taking its Cafe Amazon chain global, according to the CEO.

He called these goals a “big bet” in the company’s “treasury execution strategy” for 2018. But they would be what “PTT will certainly do,” Tevin said.

He said the traditional energy businesses, with PTT included, are facing such challenges as disruptive technology, changing consumer behaviour towards electricity, increased public awareness regarding climate change, and more demand for clean and environment friendly energy sources.

Tevin said he expected the petroleum business to remain profitable for at least another decade before electricity will become the dominant source of energy.

The natural gas business would continue to grow, however. “PTT gives priority to the LNG value chain,” he told reporters.

“Also, PTT is interested in the electricity value chain as our next business,” he added.

Certain affiliates under PTT Group are starting to invest in renewable energy, batteries and power storage, according to the CEO. “We opt to invest in small chunks in many places all over the world regarding batteries,” he said.

Buranin Rattanasombat, PTT’s executive vice president for lubricants business, said that with the fast improving technologies regarding EVs and batteries, the widespread use of the vehicles in Thailand would be possible in the near future.

Decreased prices of EVs and more efficient batteries that can store more power per charge and make EVs run a longer distance could make EVs more popular, he said. The price of a battery electric vehicle (BEV), which is fully electric, was expected to come down to that of a fuel-powered car by 2026, which would lead to a rapid expansion of the EV market, he said.

About 9,000 EVs are in use in the Kingdom, and the number is forecast to exceed 1.2 million in 2036, according to the Energy Policy and Planning Office.

Buranin said BEVs pose the biggest threat to petroleum companies like PTT because they are the only kind of EV to run entirely on electricity, having no engine or fuel tank.

All other major types of EVs still have engines and fuel tanks, whether they be hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), extended range electric vehicles (EREV), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV). The latter have an engine powered by a fuel cell and a fuel tank for hydrogen.

However, some of PTT’s businesses will still be able to go well with electric cars.

Wittawat Svasti-xuto, PTT’s senior executive vice president for innovation and digital, said LNG remained a primary energy source used in generating electricity. Also, many EV parts are made of petrochemical products.

A typical EV has only about 50 parts, compared with more than 2,000 for vehicles with internal combustion engines, according to Wittawat.

He said petrochemicals could be made as raw materials in the production of parts for EVs that need to be light. Wittawat also said PTT was considering becoming a dealer for EVs from China, in addition to those from some other countries.

The senior PTT executives spoke to a group of Thai media on a recent trip to Germany, during which participants learned about the petroleum giant’s future projects involving electric cars.

The trip also brought the media to the head office of German carmaker BMW in Munich.

Laconic Technology Co Ltd was founded in Thailand in 2006. The company was promoted by the Board of Investment to operate web-based applications and services including applications that cover processing power, storage unit and cloud computing, in line with the Thai government’s “Thailand 4.0” policy to upgrade SMEs business and raise service levels to increase value.

The company’s platform simplifies IT with data capture and usability which is the key to the success of SMEs development. The company’s Asian customer base which utilises the ERP system has total revenue of $ 6 billion or approximately $ 190 million.

Today, organisations or companies using The “Laconic” management system have generated more than Bt6 billion in revenues, including income from its overseas customers.

“Since our first customer in Thailand 13 years ago, we have always been confident that we would see good growth here, We hope, Malaysia as a new customer, will strengthen the company’s earnings and performance. In addition, we are now negotiating business expansion into Cambodia and Myanmar, “ he said.

 Harmony seamlessly combines the benefits of Airbus Corporate Jets’ VIP widebodies – such as comfort, space and quietness – to produce a consistently harmonious customer experience. It builds on the Airspace cabin brand from the Airbus airliner family.

Initially proposed for the new ACJ330neo Family, which features new-generation engines and Sharklets, Harmony can also suit other Airbus widebodies, such as the ACJ350 XWB.

“Long-haul flights provide time for productive work and socialising, as well as rest, and ACJ’s Harmony cabin concept is wonderfully well designed to enable all of these, while bringing the world within a single flight,” says ACJ President Benoit Defforge.

Airbus aircraft have the distinction of being the world’s most modern and comprehensive family. All of the corporate jet versions have intercontinental capability, with some – such as the ACJ330neo and ACJ350 XWB Families – going beyond to deliver “nonstop to the world range”.

 The company’s chief executive officer Itthipat Peeradechapan said that My Whey has received good response since its launch in April last year, especially from consumers with a healthy lifestyles, exercise lovers and the new generation looking for quality healthy drinks.

My Whey Pink Diamond is a new whey protein powder for female fitness enthusiasts as the company aims to promote strength, healthiness and beauty in line with the product’s motto, “Fitness and Beauty”.

In the first quarter, the company reported Bt1.33 billion in gross revenue, an increase of 19.1 per cent year-on-year with Bt151.7 million min net profit.

The latest agreement brings Lufthansa Group’s total order for the A320neo to 122 (77 A320neo and 45 A321neo). In addition, the airline signed an order for three more A320ceo, bringing the Group’s A320ceo orders to 273. With a total of 395 A320 Family aircraft on order, the Lufthansa Group is also Airbus’ biggest A320 operator with nearly 400 A320 Family aircraft in service. Lufthansa was the launch operator of the A320neo.

“We are delighted to see this additional order from our biggest A320 operator Lufthansa Group”, says Eric Schulz, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer. “Benefitting from the Airbus commonality and the A320 Family’s efficiency and environmental credentials such as reduced noise, lower fuel-burn and emissions, we are pleased the airline has decided to come back for more.”

The A320neo Family incorporates the very latest technologies including new generation engines and Sharklets, which together deliver at least 15 percent fuel savings at delivery and 20 percent by 2020. With more than 6,000 orders received from 100 customers since its launch in 2010, the A320neo Family has captured some 60 percent share of the market.

Launched in 2017, Marco Polo is focusing on a Trade Finance Platform built on an interoperable business network powered by open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and blockchain technology.

Together with some of the world’s leading financial institutions, TradeIX and R3 have developed for Marco Polo a solution for Open Account trade financing powered by TradeIX’s TIX platform and R3’s Corda blockchain technology.

Marco Polo enables end-to-end, real-time, seamless connectivity between trade participants, eliminating the data silos which prevent free flow of trade data and assets causing inefficiencies and discrepancies.

Initially the solution is focused on three distinct areas of trade finance: risk mitigation by provision of payment commitments based on the matching of trade data, payables finance, and receivables finance. It will be delivered via TradeIX’s TIX platform, an open platform providing applications, technology tools and core infrastructure for the trade finance ecosystem, and Corda, the world’s only blockchain platform designed from the ground up for businesses operating in complex and highly–regulated markets.

Ian Guy Gillard, Bangkok Bank Executive Vice President, said Bangkok Bank is committed to using innovative technologies to meet the needs of our customers. The company is delighted to be working with R3, TradeIX and several leading banks on the Marco Polo project in which the company is applying Distributed Ledger technologies to address the complexities and inefficiencies of Trade Finance.