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Published on April 11, 2008

The company's Bt33.85-billion capital-expenditure plan covers the period 2006-2014, according to a BoI source yesterday.

Western Digital, the world's second-largest maker of hard-disk drives after Seagate Technology, spent Bt15 billion on launching its first phase to produce up to 56 million HDDs a year.

The second and third phases require an investment of Bt17.8 billion for the production of 102 million HDDs, 80 billion uncoated wafers and other products.

Together, they will hire 32,048 workers and purchase local content worth Bt39 billion.

The Bt2.8-billion fourth phase has not yet been granted promotional privileges.

The BoI source said Thailand is the export base for the US company, which operates in the country through its subsidiary Western Digital (Thailand).

The local unit has opened two facilities - one in the Navanakorn Industry Estate in Pathum Thani and the other in the Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate in Ayutthaya.

Hard-disk drives are the country's biggest export earner as Seagate Technology, Western Digital and Hitachi, the world's biggest producers of the computer components, have factories here, according to Bloomberg.

Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul

The Nation