“Diversifying Thailand’s energy mix will help the country meet increased demand for electricity and help reduce its carbon footprint,” said Michael Barrow, Director General of ADB’s Private Sector Operations Department.

“ADB’s 18-year loan shows the bank’s long-term confidence in Chana Green and provides a positive signal to other banks and developers considering investing in infrastructure assets in the less-developed areas of southern Thailand.”

Thailand’s power consumption is expected to double from 2015 to 2036. To meet this need, the Government of Thailand has laid out plans to increase the share of renewable energy sources to the country’s final energy consumption to 30 per cent , with biomass becoming the second largest renewable power source after solar. Installed generating capacity of biomass is expected to almost double from the current 2,943 megawatt (MW) to 5,570 MW by 2036.

ADB’s financing will help Chana Green construct and operate a 25 MW biomass power project located in Chana, Songkhla province in southern Thailand.

The project will convert waste from rubber trees into renewable electricity. The project will receive a tariff incentive of B0.3 per kWh for utilizing biomass and B1.0 per kWh for investing in southern Thailand both for a period of 7 years from commercial operations.

ADB’s assistance will help provide an environmentally sustainable solution to the abundant agricultural waste that is produced from farming and wood industries by converting biomass into a renewable source of electricity.

Chana Green is a project company set up to own, develop, construct, and operate the project, which is wholly owned by Gulf Energy Development (GED), a leading private sector power generation company in Thailand.

GED currently has a total gross installed power capacity of 11,125 MW under development and operation in Thailand.

ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members with 48 from the region.

TECHNOLOGY company Diebold Nixdorf aims to capitalise on the expansion plans of Myanmar banks, providing the software and hardware – including automatic teller machines (ATMs) – that will underpin their rollout of banking services nationwide, said Piers Leach, the firm’s country manager for Myanmar.

“With the ATM expansion of local banks in rural areas, we will see additional expansion with cash recycling machines and forex machines in rural and less populated areas. They will require machines, equipment, technology and professional services that we are happy to support,” said Leach, who expects the company to enjoy higher growth in Myanmar this year.

Leach, in an exclusive interview, said Myanmar banks are keen to exploit the latest technology to ensure customer satisfaction. He believes technology used by Myanmar’s banking sector is on a par with that of other Asean countries, including Malaysia and Thailand, and will evolve rapidly.

According to available statistics, there are more than 3,000 ATMs in Myanmar, and the firm has acquired over 50 per cent of the market share for them, despite intense competition with four main competitors. The firm sells all its machines through three sales partners in the country.

“We are still the market leader, and all the major banks including CB, KBZ, Aya, Yoma and AGD are our customers. We deal with most of the private banks, and will carry on growing the business and continue support to customers here,” Leach said.

The executive stressed the importance of the firm’s cooperation with CB Bank, which has been expanding in foreign exchange and cash recycling.

The firm provides professional services for all of CB Bank’s 700-plus ATMs across the nation. According to the contract, the bank aims to double its size of ATM network with the firm’s technology.

Leach said the had firm had enjoyed healthy growth since opening its Yangon office in January last year.

“Within one year, we are where we expected we should be. Our growth is better than expected,” he said.

He considers Myanmar banks’ expansion of their ATM network, the need for equipment, and their thirst for the latest technology will be the major drivers of the firm’s growth. He believes the firm’s in-country presence can fuel the growth thanks to providing customer convenience.

“For us, it is really important to open the office here. If they have any issues, customers can directly reach us. We are close to customers and can better understand them. We can be their preferred choices of supply because we are here,” he said.

The firm now has over 40 employees in Myanmar – most of them are skilled engineers who provide technical support and professional maintenance. They are based in six major locations across Myanmar to fix any technical problems as quickly as possible.

Except for Leach, all the employees are locals, with over 30 per cent them women.

Leach said the employees were trained through the firm’s global training programme to build up their capacity. He hopes to hire more staff when the business expands.

“We hired talented local staff, and they have been trained with a global perspective. We keep on building the team. If anybody leaves, we will have a replacement shortly,” he said.

“We have trained our employees to make sure their ability is good enough to take higher positions if necessary.”

The firm mainly focuses on the banking and retail industries, and is also looking at opportunities to expand to money services in cooperation with local partners.

“Currently, the majority of our customers are from the banking industry. But we are looking to expand into retail,,” he said.

“We have partnered with some major retailers in the market including supermarkets and convenience stores, and also hope to get some businesses with City Mart Holdings. All the retailers are looking to improve the current technology, and City Mart will probably be going on the same direction.”

Leach said things had been smooth for the firm in Myanmar, despite the country’s low ranking in World Bank’s “Doing Business” report.

“We have not faced many business obstacles as we grow. Things are not going to change overnight,” he said. “We are continuously seeing improvements, and the government is trying to make things easier for foreign businesses. So, things are getting better and easier for us to work here.”

In the next three years, Leach foresees a lot of innovations, particularly in the banking industry. He seems optimistic about the firm’s growth in Myanmar, with support from the company’s other offices in the Asia-Pacific region.

“Myanmar has some advantages over Thailand, Malaysia and other Asean countries. You can evolve very quickly,” he said.

“The government is doing a relatively good job. It is going to take a long time but you cannot expect changes overnight. It is a process that will come for sure.”

Leu, an executive board member and head of bilateral economic relations at Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, on Tuesday led an 11-member business delegation that included representatives from the government and Swiss companies. Delegates covered lines of business including technology, electricity and energy, insurance, healthcare and food production.

“More and more Swiss companies have shown their interest in Myanmar. There are a lot of interesting sectors here, and it is a country that is interested in promoting economic cooperation. That is why we came here again,” she said.

Leu said 25 Swiss companies have established their presence in the country, and many more firms have been engaging in bilateral trade, which amounted to nearly US$100 million last year.

According to the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration, Switzerland ranks 25th among 46 countries with an investment of US$26.7 million in three projects.

“Switzerland is a very close cooperation partner of Myanmar in different areas including the economy, employment generation and development as well as other more concrete issues like the Rakhine crisis,” Leu said.

During her visit, Leu held discussions with government officials and local businesses mainly on issues such as labour, trade and investment, framework conditions including calls for the enactment of intellectual property (IP) and copyright laws and strengthening mechanisms for investor protection.

“Myanmar is making progress. European Union-Myanmar investment protection agreement is also at the final stage of discussions in the Parliament. We have seen investment and companies laws, which go in the right direction.

“But there may be some limitations for foreign companies and investors in how much they can invest in a local company and potential restrictions on imports. That is why we made this dialogue.”

Leu said the discussions made up the third round of economic dialogue between the two countries. The first discussions were held in 2013 followed by the second dialogue two years later.

Leu said that discussions over the framework and conditions are very important for attracting Swiss investors.

“Businesses make their own investment decisions, not the government.

The Swiss government tries to provide good framework conditions, for example, on investment protection. We will try to work with Myanmar to make the conditions as good as possible for our investors,” she said.

“We have learnt that Myanmar wants and needs more investment. So, we have to see more conditions. The more foreign companies know about the country, the more they can feel secure when they invest here.”

Leu said Swiss investment in Myanmar is still modest, and the government will encourage companies to increase both trade and investment.

“It is something that has to develop,” she said. “It is not the Swiss government but it is the companies that have to decide where they want to invest. Investors are very popular nowadays. All countries are basically competing to get investments. So, companies should know more about the draft IP law.”

She urges both sides to continue holding economic dialogues to raise awareness about each other’s economy. She describes as impressive the Myanmar government’s performance over the past two years.

“We have seen the government is proposing new reforms with a 238-point development plan. The Myanmar investment law is relatively new. It is something that will help investors to decide for Myanmar,” she said.

Leu said the development of intellectual property and other related laws is important to Swiss businesses, which mainly focus on innovation.

“IP protection makes it possible for a lot of innovations. We will be really looking forward to seeing how these laws will shape our bilateral economic relations,” she said.

Thaung Tin, vice president of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the promulgation of the laws would usher in a new era of economic development and prosperity by encouraging foreign investors to invest in Myanmar and share benefits on a win-win basis.

“It [bilateral cooperation] is far short of the potential that exists. This dialogue is just the beginning of the mutual, beneficial cooperation,” he said.

“We understand that Switzerland is one of the highly developed modern industrial countries in Europe and can contribute greatly towards the development of bilateral trade and investment relations.”

Currently, Switzerland mainly exports agricultural and marine products, minerals, forestry, and industrial products to Myanmar, while it imports a wide range of raw materials and consumer goods from the country.

The compay has targeted an annual capacity of four million tyres in the first phase.

The company invested 250 million euros (approximately Bt9.75 billion) in the new facility with a workforce of around 900. The site allows a capacity expansion of up to 25 million tyres per year.

The investment in the Greenfield tyre plant in Thailand is an integral part of its growth strategy, called Vision 2025. The combination of innovative German engineering combined with local Thai production capabilities ensures the highest quality tyre manufacturing that Thai and Asian consumers are looking for, thus fulfiling its philosophy of ‘In The Market, For The Market’, Nikolai Setzer, a member of the executive board of Continental and Head of Tire Division, said.