The rapid growth of the printed circuit board (PCB) industry in Thailand has convinced the Board of Investment (BoI) a "big wave" of foreign PCB manufacturers are investing here.
Foreign companies and areas, especially those from China, Taiwan, Japan and Hong Kong, form the majority of investors in this field, which supplies products to other key industries, ranging from electric vehicles (EVs) to medical devices.
The PCB industry has great potential to drive the economy, if promoted by the BoI.
The board believes PCB business expansion in Thailand will not lose steam, strengthening the country's position as the largest PCB manufacturer in Southeast Asia and fifth-largest in the world.
Q: What are PCBs?
PCBs are crucial electronics components that can drive advancements in other targeted industries such as EVs, smart electronics and appliances, computers, medical devices, telecom equipment, automated systems and robotics.
One type of PCBs is flexible PCBs, known as FPCBs, which are used in products with complex designs and those with space and weight limitations.
FPCBs are components of smart contact lenses and EV batteries.
The BoI granted investment incentives to Mektec Manufacturing Corporation (Thailand), a subsidiary of NOK Corporation, Japan's largest PCB manufacturer by sales volume. NOK specialises in making FPCBs.
The company plans to increase its production with a budget of 920 billion baht to serve growing demand in the EV industry, said Somchai Asawarungsaengkul, managing director of Mektec Manufacturing Corporation (Thailand).
Authorities also approved an investment project submitted by Well Tek Electronics, a subsidiary of China's Welgao Electronics.
Well Tek is the first new PCB investor to open a factory at Rojana Industrial Park in Ayutthaya, utilising an investment budget of 2.5 billion baht, according to the BoI.
The company produces high-density interconnect multilayer PCBs, characterised by the high density of electrical interconnections between layers.
Multilayer PCBs are needed for complex electronic devices, including data servers and power supply used in EVs, as well as data centres and artificial intelligence-based (AI) devices.
PCB manufacturing can support the development of the EV industry, which is expected to keep growing next year, said Narit Therdsteerasukdi, secretary-general of the BoI.
Under the country's "30@30" policy, Thailand expects EVs to represent at least 30% of total auto production by 2030, with 725,000 zero-emission cars, 675,000 electric motorcycles and 34,000 electric buses and trucks.
Q: Why is PCB manufacturing growing rapidly?
The growth of digital technology and electronics markets as well as the impact of geopolitical conflicts are factors lifting the PCB industry in Thailand.
Foreign investors seeking to avoid the impact of geopolitical conflicts and trade wars are searching for new production bases for their products, including PCBs, with Thailand an investment destination.
"Thailand can take advantage of these conflicts to draw more new investors," said Mr Narit.
Mr Somchai attributed the expansion of PCB manufacturing in Thailand to the growth of 5G wireless technology, electronics devices linked with Internet of Things technology and AI robots.
Electronics production played an important role in driving investment during the first nine months this year. The value of investment project proposals for this period soared by 42% year-on-year to 723 billion baht, the highest level since 2015, according to the BoI. The uptick in value was apparent for electronic products and data centres, noted the board.
The adjusted investment value totalled 509 billion baht in the corresponding period last year.
Singapore was the top source of foreign direct investment with applications worth 181 billion baht, more than double the 79.7 billion the previous year, mostly attributed to large investments in electrical and electronics products as well as data centres by units of Chinese and US firms.
China ranked second with investment of 114 billion baht, up 18% from 96.5 billion a year earlier, followed by applications from companies from Hong Kong (68.2 billion baht), Taiwan (44.6 billion baht) and Japan (35.5 billion baht).
Thailand is a safe and resilient place that is good for their businesses, said Mr Narit.
Q: What are the trends for 2025?
PCB production, along with other modern industries such as data centres and cloud services, will continue to grow next year, helping the BoI meet its investment target by 2027, he said.
The BoI set a target to achieve 3.3 trillion baht in investment value under its five-year strategy, which was announced in 2022.
Under the strategy, from 2023 to 2027 the BoI will support investments in high technology, green and smart industries as well as businesses driven by creativity and innovation, all of which are expected to form a new economy and increase competitiveness.
As of September this year, investment promotion under the strategy led to new investment worth 1.5 trillion baht, making up almost half of the 3.3-trillion-baht target.
New investment over the past 21 months mostly came from business expansion in PCBs, smart electronics, EVs, data centres and cloud services, said Mr Narit.
In the PCB industry alone, as of September 2024 investors had submitted 95 projects worth 162 billion baht to the BoI for investment incentive packages.
Thailand's PCB industry has grown exponentially over the past year, he said, adding this expansion will continue to gain momentum.