Polyplex (Thailand) Plc has a US$10-million (Bt380 million) investment budget to expand its extrusion-coating and lamination products for customers in the US.

The extrusion-coating and lamination items are used to cover materials such as books or wood.

Half its investment ($5 million) will be used to build an extrusion-coating factory in Rayong in the second half of this year.

The firm is due to sign a contract to buy land from Siam Industry Estate next week. And the plant is expected to start operating in the second half of 2007.

The remaining $5 million will be spent building a lamination factory, which is still being assessed, company director and general commercial manager Manish Gupta said.

Gupta said they decided to expand because five customers in the US that manufacture extrusion coating want to reduce production costs by ordering supplies from the Thai company.

"We will produce on average 30 to 40 per cent of the total production of our customers in US," Gupta said.

The company's expansion this year would boost its sales next year, he said.

Meanwhile, its production for Polyester (PET) Films and Metalizer Films in Turkey will start in December. This business will have a capacity of 45,000 tonnes a year and is expected to generate $20 million next year.

Polyplex (Thailand) invested $68 million in Turkey last year.

Gupta said the firm estimates its total revenue this year will be lower than last year - down from Bt3.2 billion to Bt3 billion. This is because demand in the Thai market has slipped because of smaller economic growth this year.

The company also faced a jump in costs after the oil price rise. This caused its gross margin to drop from an average of $1 per kilogram to 60 cents this year. But it did not effect the company's financial results.

Chalida

Ekvitthayavechnukul

The Nation