Cabinet says it

The Cabinet will today consider potential locations for upstream steel projects in a bid to draw new investment.

Atchaka Sribunruang Brimble, secretary-general of the Board of Investment, said yesterday that the National Economic and Social Development Board would likely submit the site study to the Cabinet meeting.

Written expressions of interest in such projects have come from four steelmakers - Nippon Steel, JFE Steel, Arcelor Mittal and Baosteel - but not all four could win BoI tax incentives, she said.

Industrial land is limited, as sites must be located in an area approved by the local community, she said, adding that the winning investors must adopt the better social-responsibility practices exercised elsewhere.

Vikrom Vajragupta, director of the Iron and Steel Institute of Thailand, who attended the meeting with Atchaka yesterday, said that if the location is approved, the Industry Ministry would take the lead in seeking cooperation from other agencies.

Atchaka and the ministry's permanent secretary will jointly consider the structure of the new committee to be formed to oversee the smelter projects.

"Notably, it must be ensured that the projects are friendly to the environment and gain acceptance from the community," he said.

Atchaka said the panel would also draft the projects' terms of reference, which will specify the required technology as well social contributions.

The BoI also yesterday said CBC Ings (Thailand), a local unit of Japan-based CBC Ings, had won tax privileges for a Bt362-million components plant in the Amata Nakorn Industrial Estate in Chon Buri.

The facility will have the capacity to supply about 30 million chemical, machinery and plastic parts a year to the electrical and automobile industries.

The plant's metal-coating capacity is 133.4 million parts per year. It is expected to hire up to 1,000 workers.

CBC Ings manufactures, processes and sells optics, electronic information equipment and parts related to IT.

It imports, exports and sells products such as synthetic resin, transformation goods, medicine, agrochemicals, foods, machines and apparel.

"We attracted the investment through the BoI's office in Osaka, which approached the company to come here. CBC Group has now invested in several countries, including the US, Poland, China and India. We expect more investment from big corporations to follow," Atchaka said.