Ticon eyes Bt50-bn regional plan

Virapan Pulges, managing director of Ticon Industrial Connection, said this year marked the 25th anniversary of Ticon’s factory and warehouse rental business. He said it began with registered capital of just Bt1 million and had grown to Bt8.443 billion in paid-up capital, with a total asset value of Bt31.209 billion as of December 31, 2014. He called this “a reflection of our strong business growth and excellent financial health”.

Virapan said Ticon’s business was founded on the “always one step ahead” concept, which underlines the company’s quest for leadership in an ever-developing industry and a track record of genuine successes. 

Ticon was Thailand’s pioneer in the development of factories for rental, while TPark was the first player in the country’s logistics-park industry as well as the first company to receive permission from the Board of Investment to operate such a business. 

TMan, the latest member of Ticon Group, also holds the distinction of being the first non-financial company in Thailand to receive permission from the Securities and Exchange Commission to operate as a manager of real-estate investment trusts (REITs).

Ticon Group operates 707 rental factories and warehouses across 50 projects, covering total space of 2.2 million square metres on 3,100 rai (nearly 500 hectares) of land and representing a total value of Bt35.528 billion. These projects include 18 Ticon ready-built factory projects with 1.1 million square metres of rental space, plus 32 TPark ready-built and built-to-suit warehouses spanning 1.1 million square metres. 

Additionally, Ticon Group has 5,000 rai of land available for development, which will eventually provide 2.5 million square metres of rental space. 

Last year, Ticon Group posted revenue of Bt5.856 billion and net profit of Bt761 million. Over the next five years (2015-2019), the group plans to invest Bt50 billion to expand its factory and warehouse spaces in Thailand and overseas markets – including Asean members Indonesia, Myanmar and Vietnam.

This year, Ticon Group has prepared a budget of Bt6 billion for investments, with Bt1.5 billion going to Ticon and Bt4.5 billion to TPark. 

 

Space expansion 

Ticon’s goal for the year is to add 100,000sqm of leasable factory space, representing a 10-per-cent increase from last year, while also maintaining its primary base of overseas SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) customers. 

Ticon also aims to develop a new offering in the form of 500sqm “mini-factories” to address the varying needs of SMEs better. 

For its overseas ventures, Ticon will first invest in factory and warehouse development in Indonesia. The company expects to reach a contractual agreement early next month and show clear developmental progress by the second quarter of this year. 

Virapan said the group would raise funds by selling Bt4 billion worth of factories and warehouses to Ticon Freehold and Leasehold REIT (TREIT) in the second and third quarters of this year. Additionally, the company intends to convert Ticon Group’s three property funds – which are worth Bt22.951 billion combined – into further additions for TREIT once the specifics of taxation for such a conversion have been clarified by the Revenue Department.

Patan Somburanasin, managing director of Ticon Logistics Park Co (TPark), added: “TPark aims to expand leasable warehouse space by 250,000sqm or approximately 20 per cent over last year’s total. This expansion will be broken down evenly, with 50 per cent of the additional space going to ready-built warehouses and the other 50 per cent going to built-to-suit facilities. 

“TPark remains fully focused on our strength in terms of availability and readiness to satisfy our customers’ needs, especially as we have acquired land in various locations – including Bang Phli, Bang Na, Wang Noi, Laem Chabang, Sri Racha, and strategic locations in Khon Kaen, Lamphun and Surat Thani – in preparation for further development in accordance with customer requirements. These future sites represent demand hot spots for customers in various industries – especially for the modern trade sector, which is undergoing significant growth into various regions.

“TPark Khon Kaen is currently in its first phase of warehouse construction for 10,000sqm of leasable space, with completion expected in the third quarter of the year. TPark Lamphun is on track to reach completion and launch in the fourth quarter. 

“On the Asean front, TPark has entered a partnership to develop a rental warehouse in Indonesia with 146,000sqm of leasable space in the first phase. We are confident that this project will enter full development this year,” he said.

In addition to business expansion, Ticon Group says it considers the development of high-quality standards to be a high priority. The group recently adopted the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building standard, which is one of the most globally accepted standards for eco-friendly building designs, for the transformation of its factories and warehouses. 

For these facilities, the company says it considers every detail from location to design, construction, usage and maintenance to reduce energy consumption and environmental footprint. As a result, the impacts on water, air, soil, and various natural resources are reduced along with waste and operating costs.