Western Digital CEO among 50 confirmed attendees at BOI Fair

Their attendance reflects the confidence of foreign investors in remaining in the country, Atchaka Sibunruang, secretary-general of the Board of Investment, said yesterday.
The BOI has sent invitations to 500 chief executives of foreign companies that do business in Thailand and so far 50 have accepted, she said.
The flood-delayed BOI Fair will now be held from January 5-20.
Coyne of Western Digital, the US-based electronic component manufacturer, and Osamu Masuko, president of Mitsubishi Motors Corp, will be the guest speakers during the CEO forum.
Western Digital has factories in Bangpa-in Industrial Estate, which held its big cleaning day on November 21. After that, the hard-disk-drive (HDD) company was able to restart its operations.
Coyne has said the disruption from Thailand’s flooding would hurt the supply of HDDs in the world market next year, while prices of the devices would rise.
The confirmation from Western Digital of its participation in the fair could help turn the tide of relocation of electronic-component manufacturers to other destinations, Atchaka said.
The BOI expects applications for investment promotions this year to reach Bt630 billion in project value, up from Bt447 billion last year and Bt620 billion during the first 11 months of this year. This month alone has already seen Bt10 billion worth of applications.
Construction of the 3,000-square-metre outdoor pavilion with 42 booths, as well as the Royal Pavilion and BOI Pavilion, is about 80 per cent complete. All pavilions are scheduled to be ready for decoration by  Sunday.
The board targets 3 million to 4 million visitors to the BOI Fair.