BIG, WHAID join up to start supplying gas via pipelines
Bangkok Industrial Gas (BIG) and WHA Industrial Development (WHAID) announced the establishment of joint-venture firm, BIG WHA Industrial Gas, on Thursday (August 27).
BIG will hold 51 per cent and WHAID 49 per cent of the new firm.
Initially, the joint-venture will build a gas-generation plant with a pipeline to supply customers with nitrogen in the Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate (ESIE) and adjacent WHA Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate 1 (WHA ESIE 1), home to Thailand’s automotive cluster.
The new company is expected to start operating commercially in the first half of 2022. Production and distribution of oxygen, or other industrial gases will subsequently be added to the JV’s product portfolio. Geographically, the new company is expected to grow to include other WHA industrial estates in Chonburi and Rayong provinces.
“This joint venture will enable us to serve customers initially in ESIE and WHA ESIE 1, and at a later stage, in other WHA Industrial Estates, in an efficient and reliable manner. The pipeline solution will be a significant improvement compared to delivery by trucks,” said Piyabut Charuphen, managing director of Bangkok Industrial Gas.
“Our innovative industrial gas production and pipeline network distribution, monitored digitally, will not only boost reliability in the transmission of gas, but will also help manage costs more efficiently than trucks. We are confident that BIG’s digital innovation and technology in industrial gas will sustainably enhance the growth of Thailand’s EEC [Eastern Economic Corridor] project,” Piyabut added.
“This new joint-venture is in line with our concept of ‘Smart Eco Industrial Estates’ and our strategy to develop win-win partnerships with industrial experts for the benefit of our customers,” said David Nardone, group executive industrial and international for WHA Industrial Development.
Industrial gas is used in a wide range of industries, such as automotive, electronics, petroleum and petrochemical, steel and metal, glasses, food and beverage, and medical gas, etc.
Founded in 1987, Bangkok Industrial Gas (BIG), is a joint venture between Thai investors (led by Bangkok Bank) and Air Products and Chemicals, a leading global Industrial Gas company in operation for nearly 80 years with experience in 50 countries.
