Siam Cement May Spend 6 Billion Baht on Second Cambodia Factory
By Anuchit Nguyen
May 6 (Bloomberg) -- Siam Cement Pcl, Thailand's biggest producer,
may spend as much as 6 billion baht ($189 million) to build a second
factory in neighboring Cambodia to triple its production capacity
there.
The planned factory, twice as big as the first plant, will increase
the Bangkok-based company's capacity in Cambodia to 2.55 million tons
a year, company President Kan Trakulhoon said in a May 2 interview. A
feasibility study will be completed this year.
Siam Cement, controlled by the king's asset management arm, is
building cement and paper plants in countries including Vietnam and
the Philippines to counter slowing domestic sales. The company is also
expanding investments in petrochemicals to benefit from oil reserves
in the region.
``We have to im****t cement for our customers in Cambodia, as the first
factory, which started operations in January, is already running at
full capacity,'' Kan said. ``There's a very strong outlook for cement
sales in Cambodia because of infrastructure development and economic
growth.''
BHP Billiton Ltd., the world's largest miner, and Chevron Corp. are
investing in Cambodia to tap the nation's natural reserves of copper
and oil. Developers such as Club Mediterranee SA and Starwood Hotels &
Resorts Worldwide Inc. are building hotels and adding rooms as more
tourists visit ancient temples such as Angkor Wat.
Cambodia's economy expanded 9.6 percent last year and 10.8 percent in
2006, according to the International Monetary Fund's data on its Web
site.
Shares of Siam Cement rose 1.9 percent to 212 baht on May 2 in
Bangkok. Markets were shut yesterday for a public holiday.
To contact the re****ter on this story: Anuchit Nguyen in Bangkok at
anguyen@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Updated: May 5, 2008 20:21 EDT
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