Telecommunications equipment and components can become the country's latest "product champion" when electric and electronic appliances finally give way to cheaper goods from neighbouring rival countries, the industry said.

The Electrical and Electronics Industries Association believes telecommunications is the saviour of Thailand's position as one of the world's largest exporters of electronic equipment.

"We are exploring new business opportunities in which telecommunications equipment has great potential," association president Katiya Greigarn said.

The country can no longer put "all its eggs in the electronic and electronic appliances' basket", he said. Cheaper competitors China, Malaysia and Vietnam will see to that, he added.

"Although the Kingdom is the world's largest electronic-parts exporter, tougher competition and newcomers in the world market will lower its export competitiveness. The focus on telecommunications products could be the answer to our survival," he said.

Thanks to strong world demand, the country will continue to enjoy high exports of electric and electronic appliances for the coming five years.

Hard-disc drives, integrated circuits and electronic appliances remain the country's top three "product champions". Exports of electronic and electronic appliances reached Bt1.5 trillion last year. Of these, hard-disc drives made Bt500 billion alone.

But things are changing. Seagate Technology chose to locate its new hard-disc drive plant at Penang, Malaysia. Intel last year spent US$10 billion (Bt346 billion) on an integrated-circuit factory in Vietnam - not Thailand.

This move is a challenge to Thailand, Katiya said. In response, the association, along with the Federation of Thai Industries, CAT Telecom and the recently launched Telecommunications Research and Industrial Development Institute, will work to break into the world of telecommunications equipment.

The institute is getting Bt100 million a year from the government. Money will be spent on local product capability, research and development and labour skills.

Increasing product-manufacturing capacity and quality will compensate for the high cost of imported parts within the next three years.

The association aims to slash imports of telecommunications equipment from Bt120 billion annually and boost the Bt60-billion export total.

Thailand can become a major exporter like Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong.

About 20 small and medium-sized Korean telecommunications companies will meet next month with local manufacturers in the hope of forging joint ventures here, Katiya said.

Their  equipment and experience can help Thailand achieve its goal, he added.

Achara Pongvutitham,

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation