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THAI shelves U-Tapao MRO until aviation sector recovers (nationthailand.com)

THAI shelves U-Tapao MRO until aviation sector recovers

CorporateNov 24. 2020

By The Nation

Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) is suspending its joint investment plan for a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility at U-Tapao Airport until the aviation sector recovers, said THAI’s acting president Chansin Treenuchagron on Monday.

He said that only an aerospace company or airline would be keen on investing in the project.

The global aviation industry is currently struggling under the impact of Covid-19.

Asked if THAI would reapproach Airbus SAS to become a partner, he said the carrier was in talks with all potential parties.

Airbus SAS passed the bidding for the MRO but pulled out of the project, failing to deliver its proposal by this year’s April 20 deadline. THAI reasoned that Airbus was not in a position to join the venture after being hit by the Covid-19 impact.

THAI is currently focused on developing a business rehabilitation plan under the bankruptcy court and is in the process producing a final figure for its debt.

The airline is expected to launch another early retirement programme next year to cut costs, said Chansin. THAI currently has about 19,000 employees.

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SuperRich Currency Exchange to launch overseas transfers next year (nationthailand.com)

SuperRich Currency Exchange to launch overseas transfers next year

CorporateNov 23. 2020

By The Nation

Thailand’s SuperRich Currency Exchange Co Ltd expects to launch an overseas money transfer service in the second quarter next year, said its chief executive officer Piya Tantivechayanon.

The move to seek new revenue sources comes in response to the decline in foreign tourist numbers amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new service will be available via SuperRich branches and its mobile application and e-wallet. The company said it would also expand its partnerships to add more privileges and benefits for customers.

The new service is expected to boost revenue by 5 to 10 per cent.

For the remainder of this year, the company is focusing on cost reductions.

SuperRich says it is currently exchanging Bt600 million-Bt900 million per month and expects to maintain that level until the end of this year.

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Khon Kaen Sugar Industry predicts 10% rise in sales next year (nationthailand.com)

Khon Kaen Sugar Industry predicts 10% rise in sales next year

CorporateNov 23. 2020

By The Nation

Khon Kaen Sugar Industry Pcl (KSL) expects sales next year to rise about 10 per cent, driven by a 20 per cent increase in the sugar price from 13-14 cents to 16-17 cents per pound.

KSL vice president Chalush Chinthammit predicts Thai sugarcane production in 2021 will increase by 40-50 per cent after heavy rainfall over past few months, spurring a rise in exports.

He also forecast the company’s ethanol business will improve next year as the ethanol price is expected to increase to Bt25-Bt26 per litre from Bt22 -Bt23 this year.

“We expect this year’s ethanol sales to drop by 5-6 per cent [YOY] due to the Covid-19 impact on fuel demand. However, the demand for medical-grade ethanol has increased after the government launched measures to promote purchase of ethanol for production of hand sanitiser and disinfectants,” he said. Ethanol producers will ask the government to extend measures after they expire at the end of this year, he added.

Chalush estimates performance of the company’s electrical business will remain steady next year, as there are no plans to expand the business. The company’s 250-megawatt generating capacity would be used to feed sugarcane mills as this was more cost-effective than selling to the government.

The company had no plans to invest in the government’s community-based power plant programme, since it would bring low returns amid difficulties in supplying the plants, he said.

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EU aviation watchdog sees Boeing 737 Max approval in January (nationthailand.com)

EU aviation watchdog sees Boeing 737 Max approval in January

CorporateNov 22. 2020

By Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Francois de Beaupuy · BUSINESS, WORLD, TRANSPORTATION, EUROPE
Europe’s aviation safety regulator will probably approve the return of Boeing’s 737 Max in January after studies and test flights showed the U.S. planemaker has fixed the faults that caused fatal crashes.

“All these studies show us that the plane can return to service,” Patrick Ky, head of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, said Saturday in an interview with LaTribune.fr. “It’s likely that, in our case, we’ll adopt the decisions that will allow us to put it back in service in the course of January.”

EU approval will mark a milestone in Boeing’s effort to return the Max to service outside the U.S., after the Federal Aviation Administration granted final clearance for the jet’s return this week. The green light from EASA, which sought additional safety measures beyond what the FAA required, would allow Boeing to begin delivering already-built planes again in a region with major customers including Ryanair Holdings Plc.

Ky signaled in October that he was satisfied with the changes Boeing had made to the plane after two crashes within five months killed 346 people, leading to the global grounding of the 737 Max fleet in March 2019.

Backing by European regulators is seen as key to Boeing’s effort to gain global support for the aircraft, after the Max crisis damaged the FAA’s reputation as the leader in air safety.

“What will change for sure is the way we certify Boeings,” the EU aviation regulator chief said Saturday. This shouldn’t lead to longer certification processes, he said.

The European watchdog will carry out its own assessment of critical safety systems, and require that evaluations are made earlier than before in the certification process, Ky added.

EU approval would clear Boeing to begin delivering the Max outside the U.S., a critical move toward unlocking about $12 billion in cash that’s tied up in hundreds of jetliners built during the global grounding.

“We’ve started preparing measures that will allow its return to service,” Ky said. “After having looked at the plane all around, including with test flights, we can say that the plane is safe.”

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Egat to invite bids for LNG imports in first quarter of next year (nationthailand.com)

Egat to invite bids for LNG imports in first quarter of next year

CorporateNov 21. 2020

By The Nation

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) is expected to invite bids for procurement and import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the first quarter of next year, the deputy governor for fuel, Ranee Kositvanich, said.

The state authority plans imports not exceeding 1.9 million tonnes of LNG next year and 1.8 million tonnes in 2022 and 2023.

The Energy Policy Administration Committee chaired by Energy Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow on November 11 acknowledged Egat’s LNG procurement plan for 2021-23. The LNG will be used to generate power at its power plants in Chacheongsao, Samut Prakarn and Ayutthaya provinces.

Earlier, the Energy Ministry said that Egat needs to wait for the National Energy Policy Committee to approve the country’s plan to restructure the natural gas sector’s competition first before the state agency can go ahead with the plan to import LNG during 2021-23. The LNG competition plan is expected to get clearer early next year.

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GSB to boost lending and debt suspensions in 2021 (nationthailand.com)

GSB to boost lending and debt suspensions in 2021

CorporateNov 20. 2020GSB president Vitai Ratanakorn 

By The Nation

The Government Savings Bank (GSB) will next year focus more on suspending debt for customers while also increasing loans in an effort to revive the economy, said its president Vitai Ratanakorn.

He believes the economy next year will still feel the pinch from the Covid-19 outbreak. GSB’s lending is 2021 will focus on the grassroots economy, which has been hit hardest by the outbreak’s impact, he added.

While GSB judges that the economy has bottomed out, questions remain over its rate of recovery, according to Vitai. He forecast that the economic impact of Covid-19 as well as political tensions would last long into next year.

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Thai-Japan blockchain transaction takes international trade to next level: Krungsri

CorporateNov 19. 2020Sayam Prasitsirigul, Krungsri deputy chief information and operation officer. 

By The Nation

Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya) has pioneered the adoption of blockchain for international trade with a letter of credit (LC) transaction between leading companies in Thailand and Japan.

Krungsri hailed the first-ever such transaction in Thailand as a breakthrough that takes international trade to the next level. The pilot transaction was conducted in the bank’s sandbox under the Bank of Thailand’s supervision.

“This pilot project of the blockchain-based LC service for trading partners in Thailand and Japan has been developed on Contour, a blockchain-based global trade finance platform,” explained Sayam Prasitsirigul, Krungsri deputy chief information and operation officer.

 “Krungsri acted as an issuing bank for an importer, a leading Japanese metal parts manufacturer based in Thailand, which has made a purchase from its trading partner, a leading company in Japan. The cross-border blockchain-enabled transaction was successfully completed within an hour,” he added.

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PTT to buy 4.655 million shares in GRP as part of integration drive

CorporateNov 19. 2020

By THE NATION

PTT’s board of directors has approved the purchase of 4.655 million shares in Global Renewable Power (GRP), amounting to 50 per cent of GRP’s registered capital, from its parent company, Global Power Synergy (GPSC).

GPSC is PTT’s power-generation arm.

“The purchase will be carried out by PTT Global Management (PTTGM), a PPT subsidiary, at a price of approximately Bt693 million,” said Auttapol Rerkpiboon, president and CEO of PTT.

“PTT’s joint investment with GPSC will be another step forward in realising PTT’s strategy of ‘Powering Thailand’s Transformation’, which aims to integrate the operations of companies under the PTT Group. It will also support our strategic goal of producing 8,000 megawatts of renewable energy within 2030.”

Chawalit Tippawanich, GPSC president and CEO, added the move would help strengthen the company’s efficiency and expertise in renewable energy as well as open new opportunities at the global level. “It will also help increase the efficiency of GPSC’s financial management and give us additional investment capital for renewable energy projects both domestically and overseas,” he added.

Currently, GRP invests in electricity generation and distribution to the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA)’s power grid, as well as management and maintenance of nine solar farms in Lopburi, Suphanburi, Phichit and Khon Kaen, with combined capacity of 39.5MW. The solar farms have been operating since 2014 and sell electricity under adder contract at Bt8 per unit for the first 10 years, then at Bt5.66 per unit under a feed-in tariff contract.

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Liverpool FC, Krungthai-AXA team up to conduct virtual running event

CorporateNov 19. 2020

By The Nation

Krungthai-AXA and Liverpool Football Club have invited the club’s fans to join “The Kop Run presented by AXA” – a virtual running experience stretching 100 kilometres.

The event, from November 22 to January 17, is reportedly the first virtual running competition in Thailand. Winners stand to receive medals and shirts from Liverpool and Krungthai-AXA.

The goal is to raise funds for the Right to Play “Side by Side” project, which aims to help disadvantaged children and their families fight poverty.

Registration for The Kop Run began on November 17 with 8,000 tickets available.

For more information, visit https://www.runlah.com/events/kopvr20, or learn more about the Right to Play Side by Side via https://righttoplay.com/en/landing/axa-kop-run/.

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BEC World scotches rumour Juangroongruangkit family will take over business

CorporateNov 19. 2020

By The Nation

BEC World Plc’s chief executive officer has said a rumour that the Juangroongruangkit family plans to take over the business is not true.

Rumours have been doing the rounds in the past few days that the company will come under the administration of the Juangroongruangkit family, of which its most prominent member is Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit.

However, Channel 3, operated by BEC, confirmed in a news broadcast quoting the CEO that the family would not take over the media business.

The rumour has been circulating during this sensitive period of political unrest, when student-led pro-democracy protesters have urged mainstream media to report any anti-government moves.