September 2013 by AustCham

A MONTHLY PUBLICATION OF THE AUSTRALIAN-THAI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE AUSTRALIA THAILAND BUSINESS COUNCIL www.austchamthailand.com September 2013

Made in Australia, with Thai Takeaways in this edition

All Chambers Sundowners at The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel News and updates Myanmar: Telecoms Licences Awarded

COMMUNITY SERVICES AustCham Sundowners Community Services Sponsor

AUSTRALIANALUMNI Aussie Vitamins and Organic Foods for Healthy Living

Chamber events All Chambers Sundowners at The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel

ATS

specialist mortgage

ATS

Contents PATRON His Excellency James Wise Australian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand PRESIDENT Leigh Scott-Kemmis DBM (Thailand) Ltd. VICE PRESIDENTS Jason Ellis BlueScope Steel (Thailand) Limited M.L. Laksasubha Kridakon Baan Laksasubha Resort Hua Hin Belinda Skinner TopTalentAsia

DIRECTORS David Bell Crestcom-Ra-Kahng Associates Ltd.

business briefs 6 Made in Australia, with Thai Takeaways news and updates 11 VolleyRoos take on Thailand in Asian Championships 12 Myanmar: Telecoms Licences Awarded 14 Message from the Chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand

16 Community services 18 Voluntary English Teaching at Baan Khao Din School

TREASURER Warwick Kneale Baker Tilly Thailand Limited

Josh Hyland AEC South East Asia Co., Ltd. Brenton Mauriello dwp

18 20 AustCham Sundowners Community Services Sponsor – Special Olympics Thailand

Alan Polivnick Watson, Farley & Williams (Thailand) Limited Rananda Rich Blackmores Ltd. Charles Wrightman Natural Ville & Lenotre

australianalumni 22 Aussie Vitamins and Organic Foods for Healthy Living

EX OFFICIO Greg Wallis Senior Trade Commissioner, Thailand

chamber events 24 All Chambers Sundowners at The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel

COORDINATORS Paul Wilkinson JVK International Movers Ltd. ESB Coordinator Email: paul.wilkinson@jvkmovers.com

AUSTCHAM MEMBERS 29 Member Offers – Accommodation 28 New Members

Trevor Dick Indochine Asset Management ESB Coordinator Email: trevor@indochine-asset.com

From the Chamber Office 30 Message from the Office

Harry Usher Lady Pie Phuket Coordinator Email: phuket@austchamthailand.com

From the Board

Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce 20th Floor, Thai CC Tower 889 South Sathorn Road Bangkok 10120 Tel.: +66 2 210 0216 Fax: +66 2 675 6696 office@austchamthailand.com www.austchamthailand.com For more information on individual Board Member focus please visit www.austchamthailand.com/ boardmembers

President’s Message

n this column last month, Vice President Belinda Skinner mentioned that AustCham had won funding from the Australian Government under its Asian Century Business Engagement Plan scheme. A headline activity of that grant will be our Australian Business Forum (ABF) luncheons. It’s no secret that two of the most powerful business enablers are people and information. The ABF, therefore, will bring individuals together in a way that promotes people-to-people business connections, and enables the sharing of business information and knowledge. The luncheons will follow a standard agenda of: 1. A briefing on business strategy by an Australian-related or Australian-Thai related business; 2. An update by the Australian Embassy; and 3. An opportunity for open discussion/ knowledge-sharing. By following a standard program participants will know what to expect when they attend, thus creating an Australian Business Forum ‘brand’ in the same way that ‘Sundowners’ has become renowned as the best cocktail-style networking in Thailand.

Editorial Committee Belinda Skinner, Rananda Rich, Domenica Agostino, Gary Woollacott Marketing & Production Scand-Media Corp. Ltd 4/41-42 Moo 3, Thanyakarn Village Ramintra Soi 14, Bangkok Tel.: +66 2 943-7166/8 Fax: +66 2 943-7169 scandmedia@scandmedia.com Advertising Finn Balslev Email: finn@scandmedia.com Contributions to Advance magazine are welcome. Please submit content to domenica@austchamthailand.com by the first day of the month for publication in the following month’s magazine. Opinions expressed in Advance do not necessarily reflect the views of the Chamber. AustChamThailand Advance

The ABF and luncheons will be unapologetically Australia-Thai focussed. But they certainly won’t be Australia-Thai exclusive. There is no strict definition of Australian-related or Australian-Thai. The terms are intended to broadly refer to businesses, business-people and related entities that are interested in (or can assist in promoting) commerce between Australia and Thailand.

to apply lessons learnt in Thailand to the Australian end of business. Wasting no time in capitalising on Jason’s expertise, he’ll be in the new role of General Manager, Sales and Marketing, BlueScope Australia, by the time this goes to print. Jason and NS BlueScope have been incredibly strong supporters of the Chamber and Australian business more broadly. We were proud to have BlueScope as headline sponsors of our Business Conference and AFL Grand Final Family Day in 2012; and the ‘Big Blue’ social ball earlier this year. Jason himself is an outstanding and inspirational business leader. As an AustCham Director his strategic and energetic approach was invaluable. On behalf of the Board of Directors, and all AustCham members, thanks Jason for your strong support and contribution. We hope to see you back in the region before too long! I’m pleased to announce that NS BlueScope will continue to be represented on the AustCham Board. Sam McMahon, Vice President Commercial and Finance, was voted in to fill the casual Board vacancy left by Jason’s move. Welcome Sam. Jason has left big shoes, but I’m sure they will fit.

Our first ABF luncheons are planned for September so I hope to see you there.

Finally, this month we begin recruiting for a new Executive Director (ED). Our current ED, Mark Carroll, will be returning to Australia in January so we are beginning work early to ensure a smooth transition. We won’t be letting Mark off too lightly, however – he’s got the ABF and a few other initiatives to deliver before the end of the year. We’ll be keeping the pressure on for him to continue the good work we’ve seen over the past few years!

A finding of our 2012 Study of Australian Business in Thailand was that Australian business people tend to stay here for a long time. Occasionally they do, however, leave. Typically the pull has to be strong. Such is the case with Jason Ellis, President of NS BlueScope (Thailand). He’s been asked to return to Australia

Leigh Scott-Kemmis President, AustCham Thailand www.austchamthailand.com

September 2013

business brief

Made in Australia, with Thai Takeaways By Greg Earl

the figures for 40 large economies to account for the intermediate movement in components that are on-sold in finished products. Roughly one-third of intermediate imports that come into a country go back out in more complex exports.

he journey to the new heart of Australian manufacturing starts on an elevated expressway in the flat industrial landscape of eastern Bangkok. It is not until you leave behind the gleaming old riverside pagodas and the equally glittering new shopping palaces of the city that the so-called Detroit of the East emerges in a blur of global brand names on nondescript grey buildings in disused farmland. European kitchen hinge-makers, Japanese electronics companies and American food brands flash by as you travel closer to the east coast port that carries these products to the world. Tucked away in this industrial estate landscape, which can take hours to cross, are two Australian manufacturing pioneers, each in their different ways trying to survive in a new world of integrated regional supply chains and the unbundling of the very idea that products have a national origin. A visit to the Thai factories run by long-time Melbourne-based manufacturers Futuris and ANCA may provide an answer to one of the most difficult questions roiling Australian domestic politics: can we continue to make things?

Mark Tristram, ANCA Thailand Country Director

(OECD) released research that demolished the conventional thinking that trade occurs only between two countries. Their four-year project underlined a concept that has long been core to trade economics but is still confronting for many politicians and business people: that imports are necessary to create exports. The Trade in Value-Added study recalculated

Eastern Thailand is not the heart of this new globalised production. That title arguably goes to Shenzhen, the former fishing village just across the Pearl River from Hong Kong. Shenzhen was the location of China’s first experiment in encouraging foreigners to set up shop to make consumer goods for export. Long-time Australian resident and businessman Ted Rule does his own line in debunking comfortable old notions by describing his adopted home in China as the “new centre of the world economy”. But Shenzhen has moved up the supply chain as China’s rising labour costs have driven out cheap manufacturing, to the point where the city set up an office in Sydney last year to recruit Australian-trained Chinese students back home, to staff its ambition of becoming a services and innovation centre.

Futuris, which makes car parts, and ANCA, which makes the machines that create drill bits, have both replicated parts of their Australian operations on the outskirts of Bangkok. But they remain committed to Australian manufacturing and thus offer a rare ray of sunshine in an environment where the persistently high Aussie dollar has dashed hopes that the domestic factory production slump is only temporary. As ANCA’s Thai director Mark Tristram, puts it: “We are not changing the position away from Australia. We are very much a satellite plant.” But he acknowledges that “we are now an important resource back in Australia to help the Australian plant continue to grow”. Earlier this year the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development 6

September 2013

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business brief

reporter from the AFR Magazine. Its parent newspaper has long been sceptical about the aid doled out to the industry to help it secure a foothold in the global market. Enthusiasts argue correctly that Australia is one of only a dozen countries where a car can be taken from design to the driveway of the factory. But with annual production of only 200,000 cars a year, the industry is fast being overtaken by emerging nations such as Thailand, which is on track to make 2.5 million vehicles in 2013 and become one of the world’s 10 biggest producers.

Owning the design is the holy grail in this world of outsourcing where products no longer have a national passport because they are assembled from the lowest cost components delivered across a seamless supply chain. The main value is captured in design centres and marketing offices rather than the factory. Former trade official Peter Gallagher says it’s a no-brainer: “No manufacturing firm that fails to take advantage of low-cost supply in other economies can be a top competitor.” THAI NUMBERS ATTRACTIVE Thailand is another wannabe Shenzhen with a convenient location between the emerging giants of China and India. Its attractions include a developing local market in Southeast Asia, membership of several preferential trade deals (including with Australia) and a stable set of industrial development and foreign investment policies much sought by foreign direct investors. It gained some unwanted global attention two years ago when floods wiped out component factories, shutting down computer production in distant countries and delivering a costly lesson in the downside of integrated supply chains. Nevertheless, in the game of arbitraging government policies, cheap labour and strategic position in a global market, the Thai numbers look attractive to some Australian manufacturers searching for a survival strategy – a subject high on the government’s agenda. A 2012 government task force reported that manufacturing made a disproportionate contribution to exports and R&D, and outlined measures to foster a more sustainable niche sector in the new era of a high dollar. But it did not really come to grips with the basic fact that the manufacturing share of Australia’s GDP over the past 25 years has halved to eight per cent. However the Trade in Value-Added project showed that services play a little appreciated role in all exports, representing about 40 per cent of the embedded value in what looks like a shipment of raw material or finished “hard” goods, and that growth in this sector can offset the loss of manufacturing jobs. The Asian Century white paper largely ducked the implications of outsourcing and integration with stateless supply chains for Australia’s future in the region. But its original co-author, the former Treasury secretary Ken Henry, wanted to say a lot more. We know this because in the 8

September 2013

David Chuter, Futuris Executive General Manager, Thailand

weeks running up to the report’s release, Henry delivered a blunt public message that outsourcing had a long way to run and was something Australians had to get used to in return for reaping the benefits of exporting more food, education and tourism services to a booming region. “We really have to get over it. Offshoring or outsourcing will be the key source of productivity growth in the Asian Century,” Henry opined in a rare hint of dissension with the blander final report. It’s a subject that also provoked heated debate at a Chatham House-style conference of global economic thinkers in Singapore last year, where speakers expressed concern about the capacity of western governments to deal with the rapid shift of traditional jobs to cheaper offshore locations. This is despite “reshoring”: some manufacturing has returned to the US, drawn by the low dollar, a desire to be closer to consumers and the promise of cheaper energy. One of the world’s most senior economic policymakers told the Singapore Summit that outsourcing was occurring much faster than most people appreciated and would be a challenge to governments as the practice shifted from manufacturing to the middle-class, jobs-rich services sector. “Displacement of services will occur, the same as in manufacturing,” warned this close observer of the global economy. “People will have to change the way they see their identity.” LOW-COST CHINA MANUFACTURING KEY TO BUSINESS Walking into a meeting with car manufacturers can be an uneasy assignment for a

When I first met Futuris’s David Chuter in Shanghai a couple of years ago, the conversation started with some questioning of the Financial Review’s stance. The industry veteran and irrepressible enthusiast for cars is now running the Thai operation, building factories such as the Bangkok one that employs more people than the 800 at the Melbourne mothership. Chuter has only been here a year. But – he taps the window for dramatic effect – there’s already a second factory on the way right next door, such is the demand for Futuris’s flagship car seats and other components. Chuter is joined for the interview by Carl Dekoning, the Futuris business development manager who relocated from Shanghai to Bangkok because it sits neatly amid a triangle of head office in Melbourne, existing businesses in China and the next big plans for joint ventures in India. These globetrotting executives sport the same red and grey shirts as the Thai women working on sewing machines across the corridor. It’s a sensitive time for the 40-year-old Futuris business. Its parent company, Elders, has recently put it up for sale* and shop-floor executives can’t be sure whether their belief in an Australianbased car parts company can survive. The company has about A$ 400 million in sales and 1900 employees in Australia, China, South Africa, North America and Thailand. It expects about 50 per cent of the business to be outside Australia in two years. Futuris is widely seen as one of the most successful parts of the Australian car industry, with a reputation for swift and flexible supply of seats to global carmakers, born of short production runs in Australia. Chuter spits out the just-in-time production statistics that small cogs in a regional manufacturing supply chain like him have to AustChamThailand Advance

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live or die by: it takes six hours to make a car, the seats go in about two-thirds of the way along the production line, they sometimes only have two hours to produce what the nearby car assembly plants demand on a given day. Because General Motors, Ford and Suzuki are nearby, Honda is on the way and Mitsubishi is only 25 kilometres away, Chuter thinks his Thai operation is as close to the heart of a new multi-product Asian car manufacturing hub as he can be. Chuter and Dekoning, however, both hope their home base still has a role. “We undervalue what we have in Australia in terms of intellectual property. Australian companies have had to work in isolation. They have learnt to be innovative about dealing with complexity,” says Dekoning. Nevertheless, the pair concedes they weren’t always this confident about surviving the onslaught of low-cost, highvolume Asian manufacturing competition that was unleashed when China joined the World Trade Organisation in 2001. “If we had not got into China and seen what low-cost manufacturing means we wouldn’t have a business in Australia today,” Chuter acknowledges. Futuris had an early presence in China in its original guise as a maker of car air-conditioning units. But it wasn’t until the early 2000s that the company set out to sell its seats to the emerging Chinese car maker Chery, which it had identified as a longterm global player. Chuter vividly recalls telling his planned Chinese customers that decent car seats cost A$ 1000 to supply, only to be told in no uncertain terms that Chery would pay A$ 200: “We told them they had it wrong. But we did ask them

“We really have to get over it. Offshoring or outsourcing will be the key source of productivity growth in the Asian Century...” whether we could put a design team on it for a couple months and work with them. Now we make seats for A$ 200.” With Chery alone churning out three times the entire annual Australian car production, and more than 100 other car makers in China, economies of scale provide the simple explanation for this massive cost deflation. But there is also less of the product choice and after-sales service that Western car buyers have come to expect. Then there’s the vexed problem of intellectual property theft that has caused many smaller manufacturers to wait out the Asian manufacturing boom for fear of seeing their entire business disappear overnight into some nearby nondescript factory. It’s a measure of how far Futuris has come that Chuter says: “If you get hung up on IP theft, you will never get started. You have to turn this whole thing on its head. We say we will open up technology in return for manufacturing contracts. But our core technology is still done in Melbourne.” Futuris’s successful insertion into part of the car production supply chain that is integral to Asia’s economic renaissance is a window into the way that understanding these networks may be more important to export success than understanding individual countries. Austrade has been encouraging Australian businesses to think about this, with the release of a

report last year that argued market forces were driving economic integration in the region faster than trade negotiations and new opportunities were emerging. “The mapping of significant regional value-chains in automotive, infrastructure, financial services, health, food and pharmaceuticals would provide valuable information for Australian companies,” said the report by economist Manuel Panagiotopoulos. Research by the US National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) revealed that in 2004, trade in intermediate products accounted for almost two-thirds of global goods trade. Most Asian developing countries use substantial imported content to produce final goods exports. For example, 63 per cent of Thailand’s motor vehicle exports constitute products made with imported components, compared with 35 per cent for Japan, which makes more of its own inputs under an older, integrated (and now struggling) production model. Gallagher, now a trade consultant, argues that this unbundling of modern production methods has profoundly changed the nature of trade but the full impact will only be clear when we “finally abandon the customs-barrier fiction that trade is an exchange of final goods and services. Global supply/production networks have a special significance for future trade and growth patterns because they allow firms to exploit the comparative advantage of other economies.” He predicts this trans-

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formation will eventually push global economic growth back to healthy levels. FLEXIBILITY GIVES ANCA THE EDGE ANCA is a classic Australian quiet achiever. It makes self-contained metal grinding units that produce drill bits – used everywhere from other factories to the suburban backyard shed. Since it was established in 1974 by two Melbourne engineers Pat Boland and Pat McCluskey, it has become a world leader in this type of manufacturing. The company opened its Thai plant six years ago with 11 staff and produces most of its lower-end units there with 128 Thai staff and three expatriates. That includes Mark Tristram, a British engineer with many years’ experience in Thailand, who makes no secret that he won the jackpot when he took an unexpected job at ANCA instead of embarking on a long-planned return to Britain just as the euro crisis hit. “Australia was once isolated compared with Germany [where ANCA’s key global competitors are based], so the manufacturing style is more customisable. That flexibility gives ANCA its edge,” he says to explain its competitive success against American, German, Japanese and now Chinese grindingmachine makers. But back in Melbourne, Boland, ANCA’s co-owner and offshore diversification strategist, concedes that more of the higher-end machine-making will shift to Thailand as the local workforce skills improve and the high dollar makes the company’s Australian operations less competitive. ‘We’ve done benchmarking with small companies in Japan and Switzerland and the cost of skilled labour is double,” he says. “And we are not twice as productive as the Japanese on the shop floor. The cost pressures are inexorable.” Boland feels the Reserve Bank of Australia and government policymakers are basically telling manufacturers to go offshore and “that’s what will happen. We are being successful at present but we will add more complex products to the Thai manufacturing plant.” The new Thai workers need lots of training but are dedicated. They used to be sent to Australia for training, but there is now sufficient critical mass at the factory that it is less necessary. “There has been 10

September 2013

Futuris employees

a big influence on the Thai workers from Japanese investment and they are well trained in quality systems,” Boland says. “It’s easier to hire quality control people in Thailand than Australia.” He is particularly concerned about the decline of the manufacturing ecosystem in Australia. The disappearance of suppliers has undermined the larger product makers. Spare parts could be marked up three or four times the price in Japan, which forces manufacturers to vertically integrate more than their competitors do in a place like Germany, where there is a cluster of small feeder firms. But despite the increasingly brutal economics, Boland says he has no desire to shift his business offshore and declares somewhat forlornly: “The biggest reason we are in Melbourne is because we are here. We have built up expertise and have critical mass in Melbourne.” HIGH-END PRODUCTION IS THE SAVING GRACE The continuing saving grace is ANCA’s relatively high-end position as a maker of precision grinding tool vessels, in contrast to a simpler product that could be easily duplicated in China. “In manufacturing at the high end, cost pressure is not the main issue. It’s performance of the machinery.” Boland’s philosophy sits uneasily with the harsher pricing reality Futuris faced when first trying to sell seats in China.

Neither of these Australian offshore manufacturers is a paragon of lowest-cost production which uses components from many sources, a model that Gallagher sees at the heart of a more efficient world economy. Futuris is close to its end users, reducing its reliance on transport supply lines, but the company is equally up for sending its components anywhere anyone wants to buy them. And ANCA is outsourcing part of its labour cost and getting closer to the growth markets in Asia for its lower-end drill-making machines. But it is keeping much of the high-end production at home where its owners live amid a network of support services. Nor are they involved in what’s known as non-equity manufacturing through which the likes of the controversial Taiwaneseowned contract manufacturer Foxconn makes the bulk of many popular electronics products at Chinese factories which have no parent brand identification. Apple is the most cited non-equity manufacturer, with an estimated 43,000 employees in the US but 700,000 contract workers mostly at Foxconn and other factories in China. Global investment in this segment exceeds conventional foreign investment in factories by multinational firms and is estimated to be growing faster than the industry sectors in which the contract factories actually operate. Car parts producers outsource about 50 per cent of their production, but even more labour intenAustChamThailand Advance

business brief

sive industries – such as toymakers – contract out about 90 per cent of production, according to NBER. HOW AUSTRALIA FITS IN So where does Australia, with a shrinking manufacturing industry constituting only a fraction of world output, fit in? The Trade in Value-Added report points out that imported goods represent only 9 per cent of the value of Australia’s exports, the lowest level of world integration in the study. It reflects the way many Australian exports tend to be primary resources destined for elaborate transformation elsewhere. Futuris’s factories in Thailand and China are close to accounting for about half its business. So after Chuter escorts me around his production line like a proud father, I ask the question hanging over most of these offshore factories: can we continue to capture the R&D value

added in Australia if we no longer actually make things? “I think we can, but the value in that space is limited,” he replies cautiously. “I worry about five to 10 years later. If you don’t manufacture, how close are you to the product? Just as everyone has consolidated manufacturing, they will consolidate design.” Back in Bangkok, the picture is not entirely bleak. Two Thai car component companies spawned in the Detroit of the East cluster that Futuris has embraced for its very survival are drawing on Australian expertise to give their products the quality edge needed to prosper in a global industry. Aeroklas and Sammitr both make components such as pick-up truck trays. They see themselves as emerging global suppliers with crucial operations in Australia where Aeroklas is still only a distributor but Sammitr has an R&D base with both Thai and Australian engineers. “In the auto industry you have to keep upgrading

your knowledge,” says Ratana Stiramon, Sammitr’s overseas business director. “Australia is one of the best in our point of view. It is quite a unique culture and country. It’s a small United Nations.” *Readers should note the owners of Futuris Automotive, Elders Limited, announced on 31 July that it had entered into a binding agreement for the sale of the business to affiliates of Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. Further information can be found on the Elders website. Greg Earl attended the AustCham business conference in 2012 and is Asia Pacific and national affairs editor. During 20 years at the AFR he has reported on business, economics and politics and held several senior editorial positions. He has also been a foreign correspondent based in Jakarta, Tokyo and New York and now keeps a close eye on Australia’s growing economic integration with Asia.

News and Updates

VolleyRoos take on Thailand in Asian Championships

aving had an extended series of training camps across Australia, the Australian Senior Women’s Volleyball Team, the VolleyRoos, is keenly awaiting the start of the 17th Asian Senior Women’s Volleyball Championships, to be held at The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima Hall (Nakhon Ratchasima) from September 13 to 21. With qualification for the 2014 World Championships still available, Australia is not willing to leave anything to chance and will look to finish their 2013 international campaign on a high with victories in Thailand. Australia’s strong performance in this major tournament is the perfect way to close off what has been a strong year for the team, although they will face stiff competition as they attempt to secure a Top 8 placing against World Volleyball powerhouses Japan (World Ranked 3), China (WR5), Korea (WR11) and hosts Thailand (WR12) at the Asian Championships. Volleyball – the second largest sport globally with 220 member national fed-

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Australia and Thailand have for decades competed in the regional Asian rounds for qualification to the Olympics and the World Championships and have a strong sporting and cultural bond. Thailand is a regional development hub for the sport of Volleyball and new President of Volleyball Australia, Craig Carracher, lived in Bangkok for several years and was a past Vice President of AustCham Thailand in 2004-5.

erations of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and an Olympic sport since the 1964 Tokyo Olympics – has produced outstanding results in recent Olympics for Australia. In Atlanta in 1996, Australia secured the first bronze medal in the beach volleyball discipline of the sport and in 2000, as hosts, famously won gold with Kerri Pottharst and Natalie Cook beating the highly favoured Brazilians in the final.

“I am delighted to see our VolleyRoos Women’s Team competing in Thailand again. We will also host the Thai Men’s Team in Canberra in September to compete for a place in the Men’s World Championships. The great news for the sport and Thai-Australian relations is that both events will be telecast in Thailand and Australia. We are hoping to build a strong ongoing relationship between our corporate partners in Thailand and Australia with Kingsgate Consolidated and Akara Mining here in Thailand. We would welcome new sponsors for our teams as they compete in Bangkok and nearby sports stadia”, – Craig Carracher, President of Volleyball Australia.

September 2013

News and Updates

Myanmar: Telecoms Licences Awarded 15 years,” said Sigve Brekke, managing director of Telenor Asia. “In other words, they want to do data, 2G, 3G and 4G services in one go. They wanted to have data services from day one – not starting with voice and other services first. They wanted the best technology in the world and implemented the project quickly.”

By Paulius Kuncinas

he announcement of the winners of Myanmar’s recent telecoms auction marks a further milestone in the country’s modernisation and integration into the global economy. The licensing process had attracted significant attention from some of the industry’s biggest players, as the market is largely untapped. Operating licences were awarded to Ooredoo, the Qatari state-owned provider, and Telenor, the Norwegian telecoms giant. A third bidder, a consortium of France Telecom-Orange and Japan’s Marubeni Corporation was named the backup applicant, should one of the winners fail to meet the requirements in the coming months. The successful bidders will be expected to push up mobile penetration from its current level of 9 per cent to a promised 85 per cent over the next five years, while introducing 3G and 4G data connections within a 48 month timeframe. The official 15 year concessions will be awarded by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in the coming months, although the two service providers have already begun aggressive campaigns aimed at capturing market share. Telenor intends to edge its rival on call charges. The firm has promised MYR25 (US$ 0.03) per minute, compared to Ooredoo’s MYR35 (US$ 0.04) per minute offer for in-network calls and MYR45 (US$ 0.05) for calls made out of network. The Qatari firm, however, is aiming higher on points of sale, pledging to roll out 240,000 SIM card sale points and 720,000 top-up locations. Telenor plans 70,000 SIM card sale points and 95,000 top-up locations. Both firms have agreed to charge

September 2013

MYR1500 (US$ 1.51) for GSM SIM cards, which is expected to help boost penetration. SIM cards are now available at a cost of around US$ 200, making mobile telecoms services inaccessible to most citizens. Importantly for Myanmar, which is keen to show the outside world that it can collaborate with international business partners and deliver on its promises, the telecoms auction went smoothly and to schedule. The licensing process had been widely regarded as a litmus test for the government’s modernisation efforts. It was also viewed by some as a symbol of the sea change under way, marking the most public and open auction in Myanmar’s history. Ooredoo said in early June that it planned to invest US$ 15 billion in Myanmar, including the construction of 10,000 base stations, as it looked to acquire a 35 per cent market share. Telenor has yet to disclose a total investment figure. Telco outfits are expected to face a number of major hurdles as they roll out their service, including a lack of infrastructure. “The Myanmar government wanted to do within two years what our countries did in

The auction process has already caused controversy, with the lower house of the parliament voting in June to delay licensing until after the enactment of a new telecommunications law. Lawmakers have also called for a requirement that any winner should enter into a joint venture with a domestic partner. However, the government has said it will stick to its plans to grant licences in September, enabling operators to launch their services within the targeted nine months. The telecoms auction signals a major milestone in Myanmar’s development, with the industry set to become a cornerstone of the country’s modernisation. By introducing a widespread, inexpensive and efficient telecoms system, the two firms will be filling a void, while playing a key part in steering Myanmar into a new era. Oxford Business Group (OBG) is a global publishing, research and consultancy firm, which publishes economic intelligence on the markets of Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. OBG offers comprehensive analysis of macroeconomic and sectoral developments, including banking, capital markets, energy, infrastructure, industry and insurance. OBG’s acclaimed economic and business reports are the leading source of local and regional intelligence, while OBG’s online economic briefings provide up-to-date in-depth analysis. OBG’s consultancy arm offers tailor-made market intelligence and advice to firms operating in these markets and those looking to enter them.

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News and Updates

Message from the Chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand Dear Members of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, and Members of the Board of Trade of Thailand, Last month, the Board of Directors and I joined others in making a number of important policy recommendations, and shared them with the Government for further action and implementation. We are pleased to inform you that in this connection, in the Regional Joint Public-Private Sector Committee Meeting 4/2013 previously held in Ayudhya, we had shared updated information concerning the private sector’s views on the Government Rice Pledging Scheme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF was reassured of our positions regarding the Rice Pledging Scheme, as well as our expressed confidence in the future course of the Thai economy, and the overall economic and commercial development of the Thai industries. Some of these views you may have read already from some of the Thai media. Apart from the above mentioned subject, there are certain important activities that the Executive Board had taken up and successfully completed, and I would be pleased to share with you two of these activities, namely: 1. The Government’s Two Trillion Baht Borrowing Bill for Infrastructure Development The Board has concurred with the Government’s proposed Bill for this very important construction of the third generation infrastructure of Thailand. The deep-sea port of Laem Chabang and the international airport of Suvarnabhumi have in no small measure enhanced Thailand’s potential as a global investment, tourist and international trade destination of the world. This is even more important in view of the present economic, trade and investment integration that is now shaping the connectivity architecture of the forthcoming ASEAN Economic Community in the near future. On the further need for investment in the country’s infrastructure and logistics, one can see that currently 86 per cent of the total means of Thailand’s logistics is road transport. Waterways and maritime, and rail, account for only 12 per cent and two per cent respectively.

appears that the investment in infrastructural changes can only reduce half of the overall logistics costs. In this regard, the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand have tabled three additional points: 1) It is incumbent upon the Government to prioritize projects for investment. We are giving our first priority to the construction of a double-track railway which we feel could have an immediate positive impact on the country’s competitiveness and the livelihood of the Thai people. 2) We feel that there is a need to set up an organisational entity responsible for providing a management oversight that must be transparent, measurable and manoeuvrable. 3) There is a clear need for effective transfer of technology and to promote further, spare parts, and development of local contents industry in Thailand on a sustainable, long-term basis. 2. SMEs Capacity Building Clearly this has been the cardinal policy pillar of the Board. We have given an actionable priority to this agenda item by organising a seminar, entitled “SMEs: How to Make Money”, on 17 July. The seminar was very well received, and we have drawn some of the conclusions from this seminar which would contribute to the shaping of the future lessons learned for Thai SMEs, and how to gain business excellence from mentorship. The seminar gave ample opportunities to the SMEs to know their weaknesses and how to constantly improve on their weaknesses to take them to the next step. For Thai SMEs to develop themselves further into the mainstream of the AEC, it is of the essence that they put their feet on a firm footing first before embarking upon expanding their businesses into neighbouring countries. It is important that the SME entrepreneurs must not stop improving their competitive edges, their productivity and efficiencies. They have to make an effort to cut costs, to find their proper and appropriate business partners, to build their own brands and never stop improving on the quality of their products. They should not rely on the Government to help them in their capacity building but rather build on the product trust and consumer’s confidence to build their business in the long term.

There is therefore a clear and present need for Thailand to make a new paradigm shift to change to cheaper modes of transportation. It can be pointed out that at present while the rail transport costs 0.93 baht/km, and the waterway and maritime transport cost only 0.64 baht/km, Thailand continues to subsist on 1.72 baht/km for road transport.

Now for the latter part of the year, the Thai economy continues to face many global risks and volatility which may have a negative impact on our exports. It is essential that the Thai business entrepreneurs seek the ways in which we can manage our costs of doing business, by keeping the traditional market base, while at the same time looking for new markets. Should the members feel they have intractable problems or should they like to seek further advice please directly contact SMEs Support Centre, Thai Chamber of Commerce at Tel: 02-622-1860-70 ext. 260, 274 (Mr. Sakchay Sayphat) or E-mail at: sme.tcc@gmail.com

Apart from having a change in the present structural modes of transportation infrastructure, Thailand needs to reduce the logistics cost which continues to be relatively high, in spite of the fact that it has been reduced to 15.2 per cent. This would have to involve a new paradigm shift in management and inventory, as it

Isara Vongkusolkit Chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand

September 2013

AustChamThailand Advance

AustCham Gold Corporate Sponsor: BLUESCOPE

community services

Voluntary English Teaching Saturday 17 August 2013 at Baan Khao Din School Fancy giving back something to the community? Want to have some fun doing it? Well join AustChamsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; volunteer English teaching group for a very rewarding experience! AustCham Thailand Community Services supports many worthwhile programs. One of these in particular has been its long running voluntary English teaching program. We have been supporting schools in the provinces of Chonburi and Rayong for a number of years now. We get a group of volunteers together and visit these schools to undertake activities and games in a fun-filled way. We work with small groups of children aged between 5 and 12 years. Our aim is to have some fun with them and show them that learning English is not as scary as they think! They get to interact with foreigners and Thais to build their confidence and hopefully encourage them to keep learning English. If you would like to join us, we welcome you! No prior teaching experience is necessary, just a lot of enthusiasm! So come and give it a tryâ&#x20AC;Ś contact varin@austchamthailand.com to put your name down now.

social scene

Anniversary Celebration British Ambassador Mark Kent and wife Martine were guests of honour at the 10th anniversary celebrations of Baker Tilly Thailand, provider of auditing, consultancy and financial advisory services, at the Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok. Pictured from left: Khun Yundyong Thantiviramanon, Warwick Kneale, Ms Kent, Ambassador Kent, Geoff Barnes, President and CEO of Baker Tilly International, Khun Amnaj Mungkornpun, Khun Chukiat Chittimaitriskul and John Giannane.

September 2013

AustChamThailand Advance

AFL GRAND FINAL DATE: SATURDAY 28TH SEPTEMBER

FAMILY DAY 2013

TIME: BRUNCH SERVED FROM 10.00AM

VENUE: THE IMPERIAL QUEEN’S PARK HOTEL

FINE AUSSIE BUBBLES SERVED AT BRUNCH FROM 10AM - 3PM

TWO RETURN TICKETS TO AUSTRALIA WILL BE GIVEN AWAY COURTESY OF QANTAS

EVENT SUPPORTERS

INDIVIDUAL TICKET PRICES: ADULTS 2,500B CHILDREN AGED 6-12 700B

CHILDREN UNDER 6 YEARS OF AGE FREE OF CHARGE

SPECIAL PACKES: FAMILY TICKETS ONLY 2,500B (INCLUDES TWO ADULTS AND TWO CHILDREN) TABLE OF 10 ONLY 22,500B TICKETS MUST BE PURCHASED IN ADVANCE! GREAT VALUE FOR MONEY ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS INCLUDING A JUMPING CASTLE AND A MAGIC SHOW BY CLOWN ECKIE

AUSTCHAM’S LONG BAR SERVING FREE FLOW BEER COURTESY OF HEINEKEN AND WINE ALL DAY

GOURMET AUSSIE PIES SERVED AT HALFTIME COURTESY OF LADY PIES

FOR MORE INFORMATION: WWW.AUSTCHAMTHAILAND.COM/AFL

OFFFICE@AUSTCHAMTHAILAND.COM

02 210 0216

COMMUNITY SERVICES

AustCham Sundowners Community Services Sponsor – Special Olympics Thailand

The AustCham Community Services Subcommittee runs initiatives to support some of our member related charities. It aims to promote various charities to our members in order to raise awareness or perhaps match them with a member company looking for a new CSR partner. Each month part of your Sundowners entry fee will go towards the monthly CS sponsor. Each charity will have presented to, and been approved by, AustCham’s Community Services Subcommittee.

Special Olympics is the world’s largest sports organisation for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than four million athletes in 170 countries. Special Olympics Thailand is a non-profit organisation and responsible for development of health and life skills of over 16,000 Thai children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Registered as a National Sports Association under the Sports Authority of Thailand since 1991, Special Olympics Thailand organises

30-40 sport and development activities nationwide annually. This year Australia is hosting the first Special Olympics Asia Pacific Regional Games from 28 November – 8 December 2013, in the City of Newcastle, New South Wales, in which athletes from 33 countries across the Asia Pacific region will be taking part. Special Olympics Thailand is currently seeking support for their athletes to compete in these Games. www.specialolympicsthai.com

P 0 2 1 U C 3 E N R U O MELB GET YOUR

HEART RACING! TUESDAY 5TH NOVEMBER 9:30AM - 3:00PM IMPERIAL QUEEN’S PARK HOTEL

LIMITED TICKETS ON SALE FROM 9TH SEPTEMBER WWW.ANZWG-BANGKOK.ORG 20

September 2013

AustChamThailand Advance

AustCham Silver Corporate Sponsor: THANA BURIN AP

Australianalumni

Aussie Vitamins and Organic Foods for Healthy Living Aussie Vitamins and Organic Foods for Healthy Living Blackmores, Australia’s leading natural health brand, and Jasberry, one of Thailand’s most estimably managed healthfood enterprises, welcomed AustralianAlumni to experience an inside look into their companies’ successes. Blackmores’ Country Manager, Rananda Rich, together with Pharmacist Khun Sukanya (Joice) and Jasberry’s CEO, Khun Peetachai (Neil) shared their recipes for creating quality products and the ways in which Australian and Thai education and social relationships have been a winning combination for them all. Guests were served delicious organic food throughout the night, prepared by esteemed Executive Chef Decha from DoubleTree by Hilton Sukhumvit and received special token gifts from Blackmores and Jasberry.

September 2013

AustChamThailand Advance

Women With a Mission is delighted to invite friends and supporters to join their

5TH ANNUAL CHARITY GOLF TOURNAMENT

Proudly supported by Aust ChamThailand

Date:

Friday, 18 October 2013

12:00 Noon shotgun start (registra�on from 11:00am - 11:45am) Time: Loca�on: Phoenix Golf Club (Sukhumvit Road, KM158, Huai Yai) Player Fee: B3,500 per golfer or B14,000 per team of 4. Open to men and women. Includes green fee, caddy, goody bag & tournament golf shirt. Dinner and award ceremony from 6pm, free-ﬂow beer & wine. Cart and �p not included.

All proceeds from the event will beneﬁt children in Women With a Mission's NOURISH, EDUCATE and CARE programmes in Thailand. See www.mywwm.org for more informa�on.

For bookings or further informa�on, please call Kylie 087-482 3520, Rosanne 081-865 0714, or Bronwyn 089-898 0658, or email info@mywwm.org.

Sponsorship Opportuni�es are Now Available!

Becoming an event sponsor provides addi�onal support to this great cause and is a great way to promote your company. For more informa�on on the packages below, please contact Kylie Grimmer (kagrimmer@gmail.com, 087-482 3520), Rosanne Diamente (rosy.diamente@gmail.com, 081-865 0714) or Paul Wilkinson (paul.wilkinson@jvkmovers.com, 081-903 9477).

Organised By:

Proudly Supported By:

info@mywwm.org | www.mywwm.org

Chamber Events

All Chambers Sundowners Wednesday 7 August at The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel

AustCham was pleased to invite members of all foreign chambers and business associations in Thailand to join our All Chambers Sundowners, one of the largest and most dynamic networking events of the year. A very special thank you must go to The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel, who were generous enough to host such a large turnout with little notice and still provide the exceptional customer service and catering they are well known for. A wonderful evening of networking was enjoyed by all guests who even had the privilege of being the first to view AustCham’s recent video compilation, An Unbeatable Mix: Thai and Australia Hospitality produced by the very talented team at Mufasa Productions. As part of our efforts to shine a spotlight on Australian business and business people in Thailand, we sat with three top Australian GM’s in Bangkok to shed some light on their road to success and what exactly it is about the Aussie personality that fits so well within this industry. You can view the video on the AustCham website www.austhchamthailand. com and read the corresponding article in the August issue of Advance available at www. austchamthailand.com/AdvanceMagazine. Thanks must also go to our event sponsor NS BlueScope (Thailand) Limited, the number one coated steel supplier and number one steel building solutions provider in Thailand, who helped make the night more enjoyable with their photo booth and interesting displays. Also present at the event was The Special Olympics team who were chosen for this month’s Community Service Focus. More can be read about the very first and exciting Special Olympics Asia Pacific Regional Games in Australia from 28 November – 8 December 2013 in our Community service pages.

September 2013

7 1) Michal Zitek, The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel; Belinda Skinner, TopTalentAsia, AustCham Vice President; Rachaniwan Bulakul, Special Olympics Thailand; Jason Ellis, BlueScope. 2) Mark Carroll, AustCham Thailand; Laurie Smith, Austrade; Michael Berger, Bangkok Base; Jason Ellis, NS BlueScope, AustCham Vice President.3) Marilyne Gosselin, JAZ International; Esther Straub, Mondelez International; Pete Skipwith, Pepsico. 4) Yada Saraneeyatham, Tractus (Thailand); Mal Reid, Smart World Asia. 5) Gemma Considine, CCSDPT; Stewart Davies, OCHA. 6) Jessica Rhodes,

AustChamThailand Advance

Chamber Events

Servcorp; Brendan Cleary, Cellusys; Warwick Baglin, Meinhardt Thailand. 7) Ben Giles, Australian Embassy; Hatthaya Santisettachai, Jacobsens Bakery; Jennifer Allen, Australian Embassy. 8) Vanessa Steinmann, Opus/Horton International; Lisa Anaman, Lisa Property Services; Gary Woollacott, Opus/Horton International, AustCham Past President; Kathy Barnett; Bob Everest, Qantas Airways. 9) John Boyd, Aviation & Tourism International; Wantana Tanya, The Imperial Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Park Hotel; Yuta Ishikawa, JAC Recruitment; Stephen Dunn. 10) Lachlan Massey, Fuchs Lubritech-South East Asia; Sebastian Ansell, Fuchs Lubritech-South East Asia. 11) Patriya Muneepeerakul, Mothermoods; Kanokon Phongpisuttinun, Bartercard (Thailand); Thanita Jirathateep, Eclipse Group. 12) Sorasa Phungsupan, Eastin Grand Hotel Sathorn; Alexander Blair, Oriental Residence Bangkok; Nannaphat Jiemrugeekul,

AustChamThailand Advance

September 2013

Chamber Events

Oriental Residence Bangkok. 13) Clare Zitek; Trisak Lertsakwattana, AustCham Honorary member, Michal Zitek, The Imperial Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Park Hotel; Lynda Calver, Infinity Financial Solutions. 14) Rich Weber, Cargill Siam; Liz Weber, Cargill Siam; Lasia Casil, Knight Frank Chartered; Peter Moss. 15) Michal Zitek, The Imperial Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Park Hotel; Charles Wrightman, Natural Ville and Lenotre; Charles Jack, The Westin Grande Sukhumvit, Bangkok. 16) Ben Giles, Australian Embassy; Hatthaya Santisettachai, Jacobsens Bakery; Jennifer Allen, Australian Embassy.17) Iga Keme, Dej-Udom & Associates; Ju Harrison, Bourbon St.; Jane Puranananda; Dej-Udom & Associates.

AustCham Bronze Corporate Sponsor: McConnell Dowell

September 2013

AustChamThailand Advance

member offerS

Member Offers - Accommodation Phachara Suites Special offer for AustCham member at Phachara Suites five per cent off best available rate Rate includes: • Welcome refreshments including coffee, tea and bottled drinking water in the room • Complimentary unlimited internet access • Use of leisure facilities including tuktuk shuttle Terms and Conditions: • Rates are quoted in Thai Baht • All rates are inclusive of five per cent

service charge and seven per cent VAT • All rates are payable in local currency • Check-in time is after 14:00 and check-out time is by 12:00 noon

15 per cent off best available room rates at Kuta EcoStay guesthouse in the heart of Kuta Bali; that means A$ 25 per night!

Offer valid until: 31 October 2013 Call: +662 262 9901 Email: sales@phacharasuites.com Website: www.phacharasuites.com

Hotel style accommodation with modern facilities; just 500 metres to the main entrance of famous Kuta beach; forget the car, forget the traffic; restaurants, beach, shopping and night life all within walking distance.

Kuta EcoStay Bali Accommodation in Kuta BALI Indonesia Special Kuta EcoStay offer only to AustCham members

Terms: Offer valid until 15 December 2013 Rooms to be booked direct via email below referring to this AustCham special offer Valid for stays of three nights or more Email: wantoecostay@gmail.com Call: +62 813 3867 0133 Website: www.kutaecostay.com

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AustChamThailand Advance

September 2013

AUSTCHAM MEMBERS

AustCham Welcomes New Members Insight Education Consulting 56 Yada Building, 3rd floor Silom Road Bangrak Bangkok, Thailand 10500 Phone: +662 236 7222 Fax: +662 236 5858 Email: greg@insight.in.th Website: www.insight.in.th

I Want Energy Pty Ltd Unit 1, 5 Orchard Road, Moonah, Tasmania, 7009 Australia Phone: +61 3 6234 7009 Fax: +61 4 0925 5124 Email: rob@iwantenergy.com.au Website: www.iwantenergy.com.au

Representative: Greg O’Neill, CEO Montakan O’Neill, Director

Representative: Robert Manson, Managing Director

Company Profile: Insight Education Consulting was established in 1990. Located in Bangkok, Insight provides counselling and referral to individual students wanting to undertake study in a foreign country. In addition, Insight works with local Thai universities, colleges and schools on education projects including teacher training, capacity building within schools, curriculum development, education administration and other education and training related activities. Insight also provides business development services to foreign universities seeking partnerships with their Thai counterparts. Products and Services: Insight Education Consulting was established in 1990. Located in Bangkok, Insight offers a wide range of services to student clients wanting to study abroad. These include; academic counseling and referral, diagnostic English-language testing, English language teaching, translation, editing, orientation for international students, accommodation placement, pre-departure briefing. For institutional clients (universities, colleges, schools) Insight provides the following range of services including; education project development and supervision, offshore program delivery and supervision, education seminars and promotions, business development, student recruitment, market research, translations, printing, alumni management and event management.

September 2013

Company Profile: I Want Energy offers the highest quality renewable energy products on the market today. Since 2005, we have provided superior service to our customers and assisted them in achieving their goals. Our team combines over 50 years of experience and our commitment to excellence have earned us the reputation of the best Tasmanian renewable energy provider. OUR VALUES Leadership: At I Want Energy, you receive the kind of quality and service you expect from a leader. Our company is always evolving as the needs of our customers change and as new opportunities are created in the market. You can rest assured that, working with I Want Energy, you will enjoy the latest services, technology and developments in the industry. Customer Relations: At I Want Energy, our highest priority is satisfied customers. You are important to us and you can expect us to go the extra mile for your business. Superior customer service is the hallmark of I Want Energy. We are proud to serve you and work hard to earn your business. Products and Services: Renewable energy solutions for homes, businesses and industry. We do everything from small domestic installs to huge commercial jobs. Get one of our pre-made packages or something completely custom dsigned. Solar power, hot water, wind power as well as off grid power solutions.

Regent Consulting 309 Glenferie Road Malvern Victoria, 3144 Australia Phone: +61 3 9885 9248 Fax: +61 3 9824 8345 Email: info@regentconsulting.com.au Website: www.regentconsulting.com.au

Representative: Paul O’Shannassy, Director Company Profile: Regent Consulting specialises in advising parents about school and private school choices in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth and we also have an office in China. Choosing private schools in Australia can be far more difficult than in other parts of the world. The Australian private school markets are without doubt the most competitive in Asia, with more private schools per capita than any other region. Our expert people will remove the stress from choosing a private school. Products and Services: Our unique, independent service will provide peace of mind, save you time and money and make sense of all the marketing material that you have collected. In most cases, families with two children in private schools will need to earn A$ 700,000 to pay for their children’s education and it makes good sense to get expert guidance before such a significant investment. We will demystify the whole process, provide “under the waterline” information which will enable you to make an informed decision. We help a wide range of individuals and families, ranging from Australian based families requiring guidance, to those newly arrived from overseas and interstate.

TCC Hotels Group Co., Ltd 195 Empire Tower, 54th Floor South Sathorn, Yannawa Sathorn, Bangkok 10120 Phone: +662 227 9444 Fax: +662 659 5753 Website: www.tccland.com

AustChamThailand Advance

AUSTCHAM MEMBERS

Representative: Ms Lalisa Vijaykadga, Secretary of Senior Executive Vice President

Representatives: Frank Hojerslev, Chief Executive Officer Raymond Marling, Chief Finance Officer

Company Profile: Thai Charoen Corporation Group (TCC) is one of Thailand’s leading corporations. Established by Khun Charoen and Khun Ying Wanna Sirivadhanabhakdi in 1960, it has developed into one of the Kingdom’s leading conglomerates. Its business base has been built on a solid foundation of trust that is based on the highest possible standards, both at local and international levels. TCC Group has evolved from its humble beginnings into a world class corporation. It currently operates in five principal business areas, namely beverages, property, industrial trading, the insurance and leasing business, and agro-business.

Company Profile: Wind Energy Holding Co., Ltd. or WEH was founded on 27 January 2009, by Mr Nopporn Suppipat and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. The company has a registered capital of Thai Baht 1 Billion. WEH develops commercial scale wind energy projects in Thailand and through subsidiaries operates wind farms and supplies electricity the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT). WEH aims to help support and stabilize the current and future electricity supply in Thailand using renewable energy. WEH is committed to being socially responsible and environmentally friendly in its approach to wind energy project development. Strong focus is put into bringing benefit to the communities which accommodate projects developed by the company and its subsidiaries. Two subsidiaries of WEH currently operate the first commercial wind farms in Thailand and combined the largest wind farms in SouthAsia. The company has a 1GW development pipeline that stretches to 2020.

TCC Land is a member of TCC Group, one of Thailand prominent conglomerates. Our core business is to develop and to invest in wide range of real estate projects covering residential, hospitality, retails, property management, logistics, and agro industries in Thailand and worldwide. As one of the leading property developers in Thailand, we determine to deliver and the best services and products for both Thais and international communities. Products and Services: - Property and Real Estate - Residential - Hotel and Serviced Apartment - Retail Shopping Centre - Commercial Office Building - Master Plan Development - Warehouse and Industrial Estate - Apartment - Convention and Exhibition Center - Golf Course and Sport Club

Wind Energy Holding Co., Ltd. Address: 27th Floor., M Thai Tower All Seasons Place, 87 Wireless Road Lumpini, Patumwan, Bangkok 10330 Phone: +662 654 1155-8 Fax: +662 654 1159 Website: www.windenergyholding.co.th

AustChamThailand Advance

Dr Adrian Vanzyl, Ardent Capital Ardent Capital, 946 Dusit Thani Building, 4th Floor, Rama IV Road Silom, Bangrak, Bangkok 10500 Phone: +66 819 308 308 Email: adrian@vanzyl.org Individual Profile: Raised in Melbourne and a Monash University graduate. I am CEO of Ardent Capital (www.ardentcap. com) based in Bangkok. We invest into and create Internet companies across Southeast Asia. Mr Liam McCance, Vocanic Address: 42/1 Soi 61 Sukhumvit Road, Watthana, Bangkok 10110 Phone: +6691 051 8695 Email: lmccance@vocanic.com Individual Profile: Liam is a passionate technology marketer with over 10 years business experience in Asia Pacific and Europe. Liam is currently Vocanic’s Business Development Director, charged with growing the Singapore based, tech marketing startup. Since joining the Vocanic team Liam has worked closely with CEO Ian Mckee to open up new markets in Thailand, Philippines, India and establish offices

in Malaysia, Indonesia and Hong Kong. As a result Vocanic has tripled its headcount and remains the leading word of mouth and social media marketing agency in Asia. While at Vocanic, Liam has played a pivotal role in developing the strategy and implementing word of mouth and social media marketing programs for StarHub, DiGi, AirAsia, Moet Hennessy Diageo, Mercedes-Benz and Symantec on the Norton Inner Circle program. Prior to Vocanic Liam worked with advertising agencies under the WPP and Publicis groups developing brand and advertising strategies targeting consumer and B2B segments for brands including HP, Citibank and British American Tobacco. Liam is a digital evangelist with a focus on social media and engagement planning and has been invited to present on these topics at industry conferences in Asia. Mr Robert Squires, Sears Morgan 737 Sukhumvit Soi 41 The Madison, #126, Bangkok 10110 Phone: +6681 895 3089 Email: rob@robsquires.com Individual Profile: Business executive emanating from the Software and Information Technology enabled business(es) world. 17 years in Asia and 12 years in Thailand. Mr Robert W. McMillen MAC Capital Advisors Limited 1401, The Legend, 77 Soi Saladaeng Bangrak, Bangkok 10500 Phone: +6681 811 4351 Email: rwm@maccapitaladvisors.com Individual Profile: Robert W. McMillen is the Chairman and CEO of MAC Capital Advisors Limited, in international corporate advisor, focusing on Asia and the Middle East (www.maccapitaladvisors.com). MAC Capital is a member of Global Alliance Partners (www.globalalliancepartners.com), a group of investment bankers, brokers and asset managers operating in 26 countries from 84 offices. Mr McMillen sits on numerous boards including Seamico Securites Pcl, Brooker Group Plc and GAP. He has previously served on the board of Raimon Land as Chairman of its EXCO. He currently resides in both Bangkok and Dubai. Mr Trevor Ian Dick, Indochine 130/68 M. 5 Ban Chang Sub-district Ban Chang District, Rayong 21130 Phone: +6681 935 3824 Email: trevor@indochine-asset.com Individual Profile: Owner of Indochine Asset Management Ltd and Eastern Seaboard Co-ordinator of AustCham. September 2013

From the Chamber Office

Message from the Executive Director

ustCham does a lot of events. And given our diverse membership, our events also tend to be broad-ranging. We have our more serious Boardroom Briefs and Luncheon Addresses, of course Sundowners cocktail-style networking, and more social AFL Grand Final Family Day and Annual Gala Ball. We are planning to reintroduce an AustCham golf day next year to coincide with Australia Day on 26 January. And we’ll soon be introducing our Australian Business Forum luncheons. August saw two of our best events to date. Our All Chambers Sundowners was phenomenal with a massive 467 guests! We anticipated the numbers were going to be big, and that forced us to search for a larger venue just four days out from the event. Michal Zitek and his team from The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel answered the plea for help, delivering incredibly in the role of venue sponsor and putting on a fantastic spread! With the help of our corporate sponsor BlueScope, we showcased Thai didgeridoo players, who even mixed it up a little with the violinist! Our Coffee Club 2013 AFL Grand Final family day will also be at The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel. If the standard of August Sundowners is any measure, it is going to be great. Some AustCham members might not know it, but we have also been active in delivering a series of events for our AustralianAlumni program. The most recent was fantastic. It was a relatively complex production involving a number of speakers and a cooking demonstration. It focussed on healthy lifestyle and showcased two great products – Jasberry rice by Siam Organic and vitamins by that great Australian company Blackmores. Some of you might recall from our March edition of Advance magazine that Siam Organic is the brain-child of Australian alumnus Peetachai (Neil) Dejkraisak who studied at Canberra Grammar High School and also Melbourne University. So many of AustCham’s events are genuine team efforts. The healthy living AustralianAlumni event was no exception. It was also a fantastic demonstration of the resources and skills that AustCham can marshal, even though we are not a cash-rich organisation.

September 2013

Our Vice President M.L. Laksasubha Kridakon was the one who introduced us to Siam Organic in the first place. As the AustCham Director responsible for the alumni program she has been tireless, using her amazing network of connections to grow the group to almost 1,700 contacts! Another AustCham Director, Rananda Rich, presented on behalf of Blackmores. Along with Opus Recruitment, Blackmores is one of the first ever annual corporate sponsors of the Alumni program. Rounding off the Director trio, Josh Hyland also represented the AustCham Board as a highly engaging Master of Ceremony. Josh also contributed much to the behind-the-scenes organising of the event. Considerable credit for the success of the event must also go to the team in the AustCham office (but not me, because I took a back-seat on this one). As well as tying together all the various components that went into the event, they negotiated a valuable sponsorship arrangement with the Double Tree by Hilton. The Double Tree warmly welcomed the alumni group, and even lent us their Italian chef who made a mouthwatering Jasberry rice and mushroom risotto! It’s easy to forget just how much effort goes into events, and how generous our supporters are in contributing their time and financial support. If you value what we do, then consider taking the time to thank our sponsors and the volunteers that serve on the Board and otherwise help out.

Calendar of Events Wednesday 4 September Bangkok Sundowners

18:00-21:00 Venue: Sambal Bar, Royal Orchid Sheraton, Bangkok Corporate Sponsor: Akara Mining Catering and Venue Sponsor: Royal Orchid Sheraton, Bangkok Friday 13 September Eastern Seaboard Sundowners

18:00-21:00 Venue: Cape Dara Resort Pattaya Catering and Venue Sponsor: Cape Dara Resort Pattaya Saturday 21 September Voluntary English Teaching

Bus departs at Thai CC Building at 8:00 Location: Wat Phra Patharnporn School, Sri Ra Cha Saturday 28 September The Coffee Club 2013 AFL Grand Final Family Day

10:00-15:00 Venue: The Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel Naming Rights Sponsor: Bangkok Fine Wine and Qantas Airways AFL Partners: Royal Orchid Sheraton, Bangkok AFL Supporters: Bisley Workwear, Lady Pie and Raja’s Fashions

Thank you to our August sponsors

If you’d like to learn a little more about the AustralianAlumni group, then please check out the website at www. australianalumni.com.

Mark Carroll Executive Director, AustCham Thailand www.austchamthailand.com

AustChamThailand Advance