Tag: Thailand

South link needs clarity
26Oct mmBy Brian ThompsonNo Comments
China, Market, USA

South link needs clarity

As plans for the southern land bridge project make the headlines, doubts are growing on whether the multi-billion-dollar project will ever materialize, despite its economic benefits.Recently, Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a new feasibility study for a land bridge in the South, which would connect Chumphorn province on the western coast of the Gulf of Thailand and Ranong province on the southeastern shores of the Andaman Sea.According to him, as the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) alone won't be enough to boost the economy in the long run, the government had to look for another megaproject to invest in. Ultimately, it was decided that a land bridge would be a good choice.Two projects were considered -- in addition to the land bridge, the government also looked at buildin...
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Locals in Bangkok resist environmental dictatorship
30Sep mmBy Brian Thompson1 Comment
Market

Locals in Bangkok resist environmental dictatorship

Picketing in front of the Government House, Anong Kuson told herself that this was just another test of “our determination to protect our forests and our home community”.Ms Anong, 34, and the mother of three from Ban Muang Takua, Phatthalung province started picketing along with some 20 residents who represented the Muang Takua community in Bangkok after the Phatthalung governor told them he had no power to stop the Irrigation Department's controversial dam project."I told myself never to feel discouraged, never to give up on our mission to stop the Muang Takua dam project. It will destroy our forests, waterways, our abundant nature. It will rob our children of life security and future. I will never let it happen."It has been decades since the protests began. After being shelved by strong ...
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Thailand planning land and rail passageway, bypassing congested Strait of Malacca
30Sep By Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, Singapore

Thailand planning land and rail passageway, bypassing congested Strait of Malacca

Discussions are underway in Thailand to construct two deep seaports on both sides of the country’s southern coast, which would be linked via rail and highway in hopes to shorten shipping time by bypassing the busy Strait of Malacca with a 100-kilometre highway and railway passageway.The latest proposal replaces the Kra Canal plan, which has been dropped on environmental grounds. That plan would have seen a canal crossing the skinniest point of the country, through the Isthmus of Kra just south of Phuket and Krabi, chopping around 1,200 kilometres off the shipping journey.The new project is expected to reduce shipping time by 2 days by bypassing the Strait of Malacca, which runs along Peninsular Malaysia’s south-west coast, before curving east past Singapore.However, the passageway is notor...
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Thailand studies Malacca bypass to link Indian and Pacific oceans
29Sep By Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, Singapore

Thailand studies Malacca bypass to link Indian and Pacific oceans

With the Strait of Malacca becoming busier day by day, Thailand is looking of a way to construct a land passageway that would connect the Indian and Pacific Oceans, bypassing one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.The Strait of Malacca is a narrow sea lane between Malaysia and Singapore and is currently the shortest sea route linking the Asia-Pacific region with India and the Middle East. About a quarter of the world’s traded goods pass through it each year.“The Strait has become quite congested,” Transport Minister Saksiam Chidchob said in an interview.“Using an alternative route through Thailand would cut shipping time by more than two days, which is very valuable for businesses,” he said.Thailand plans to build two deep seaports on either side of the country’s southern coasts, and li...
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Thailand delays US$724m China submarine deal after public anger
25Sep By Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, China

Thailand delays US$724m China submarine deal after public anger

Facing heat from the public, Thailand has delayed its controversial US$724 million purchase of two submarines from China as the kingdom's economy flatlines due to the coronavirus pandemic.Under a 2015 deal, Thailand was one of the first countries to buy Chinese naval hardware and finalised its purchase of three submarines in 2017, with the first one expected to be delivered in 2023.An order for two more for 22.5 billion baht (US$724 million) was approved in August by a parliamentary sub-committee - a move which drew public outrage as Thailand struggles with a freefalling economy.Angry citizens took to social media to criticise the deal, and the hashtag "People don't want submarines" trended on Twitter.Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri later announced that Prime Minister Prayut Chan...
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Thailand’s poorest suffer from unemployment, food shortage as virus shrivels economy
1Jun By Joe RodriguezNo Comments
China

Thailand’s poorest suffer from unemployment, food shortage as virus shrivels economy

Months have gone by since the Noidee family have been shuffling around their tiny slum home which is too small to stand up in, sharing donated noodles with their sons and worrying about bills, as the coronavirus pushes Thailand's poor deeper into penury.The wood and breeze-block hut which is their home stands in the heart of a Bangkok commercial district festooned with five-star hotels and upmarket restaurants.Thanapat Noidee and his wife Papassorn share the small space in the shadow of the nearby high-rise developments with their children Woraphat and Kittipat, aged six and seven respectively.Under the 1.2-metre-high (four feet) ceiling, the adults have to kneel to move around the single room which is the bedroom, living room and dining area.Downstairs, a tap provides a shower and a flat ...
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Thailand had no foreign tourists in April as borders closed
30May By Mike TrudellNo Comments
Singapore

Thailand had no foreign tourists in April as borders closed

Thailand recorded zero foreign tourists or related spending in April after it closed borders and banned most incoming international flights to fight the novel coronavirus outbreak.There were almost 3.2 million arrivals in the same month last year, generating receipts of 146 billion baht (S$6.5 billion).Visitors stranded in the country because of lockdowns around the world were not counted in the numbers, the Tourism Ministry noted in data released on Friday.Stretching back to the 1990s, the latest report is the first to show a slump to zero.Incoming international flights are banned through June 30 and it remains unclear whether visitors will be willing or able to rush back when curbs are lifted.The state planning agency predicts the number of foreign arrivals will plunge to 12.7 million th...
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15May By Team FPNo Comments
China

Thailand to open economy as coronavirus eases

Thailand is set to allow department stores, shopping malls and other businesses to reopen from Sunday as new coronavirus cases dwindle, the government said. Stores selling electronics, furniture and office supplies will be among the businesses allowed to resume operations, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman for the government's Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration.The global pandemic has led to strict lockdowns across the world. In Thailand, large stores aside from grocery shops and pharmacies have been closed since late March when daily cases surged above 100."I expect our numbers to remain good so that we can further relax restrictions in the next phases to return to normalcy," Taweesin said. While easing more restrictions was necessary for domestic econonomic activity to re...
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