BANGKOK: Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor Office (Eeco) is closely monitoring the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) as it could become an important competitor in attracting investment in Asean.
“Malaysia-Singapore’s special economic zone was established to compete against Thailand’s EEC in drawing investment amid Chinese production relocation to Asean,” EECO secretary-general Chula Sukmanop told newspaper Krungthep Turakij.
He noted that Singapore and Malaysia are well aware of the EEC’s limitations, saying that JS-SEZ is being developed using Singapore’s expertise in economic zone management and Malaysia’s advantage in attracting high-technology enterprises in electronics and data centres.
Privileges for investors, support for the electronic industry, promotion of data centres and land pricing are among the factors that should be monitored, he said.
Chula said EEC faces limitations due to the higher prices for industrial land in Chonburi and Rayong that range from one million baht (US$29,700) to seven million baht per rai or 1,600 sq m.
With industrial land near ports almost full, the EEC should accelerate the development of infrastructure to facilitate transportation, he added.
The EEC should also accelerate negotiations in drawing investment and summarise privileges under the Eastern Economic Corridor Act.
Eeco is currently negotiating projects and privileges worth 136 billion baht with 14 investors, including those from fields such as digital, automobiles, bio-circular-green economy and services. — The Nation/ANN
