PM seeks support for EV push

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is seeking the support of business leaders from 21 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) nations for the kingdom’s electric vehicle (EV) industry.

In his keynote speech for the Apec CEO Summit 2022 yesterday, Gen Prayut reaffirmed Thailand’s push towards sustainability, saying the country is making the transition to clean energy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and record net-zero emissions by 2065.

The summit, attended by business leaders and government figures from across the Asia-Pacific, is seen as an opportunity for dialogue on the most pressing issues for the economy.

“Thailand is moving into the EV industry and is building its EV ecosystem. Thailand aspires to be one of the world’s biggest EV production bases in the near future,” he said.

“Financial and technical cooperation, as well as knowledge sharing, technology dissemination and capacity building are fundamental to making such progress. We look forward to fostering cooperation with you in this area.”

Gen Prayut said the push into the EV sector is in line with the Bio-CircularGreen (BCG) economic model, which encourages companies to look beyond profit maximisation and focus on a more balanced, inclusive and sustainable way of doing business.

“We must ensure that we leave no one behind on our path of development. We need to ensure the benefits of this growth are felt at all levels across our region,’’ he said.

Gen Prayut said with the world reconnecting in the post-Covid-19 era, Thailand wants to steer Apec towards a more forward-looking agenda that takes into account today’s rapidly changing economy.

These include new trade and investment narratives, digital transformation and reconnecting supply chains and travel, in addition to the global sustainability agenda, captured in this year’s Apec theme of “Open. Connect. Balance”.

He said Apec’s priorities were guided by the BCG model Thailand introduced to recover from Covid-19, making it a blueprint for long-term growth.