Dow Chemical Thailand was established nearly 50 years ago in 1967, as part of the company’s global efforts to explore and develop new markets. Recognizing the growth potential of the petrochemical industry in Thailand and across Southeast Asia, Dow established its first Thai manufacturing facility in 1978 in the Phra Pradaeng district of Samutprakarn. This facility imported, distributed and produced chemical products, such as polystyrene, for the local market and the markets across Southeast Asia.

Since the establishment of the polystyrene (PS) manufacturing plant in Phrapadaeng, Dow has maintained a positive and collaborative relationship with Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI). In many ways due to the collaboration between Dow and the BOI, the polystyrene plant and the many manufacturing facilities that have followed, have played an active role in bolstering the local economy, improving Thai industry technologies, and spurring additional investment in facilities that produce similar downstream petrochemical products

“Dow continues to maintain a positive, collaborative relationship with Thailand’s BOI since the establishment of its polystyrene manufacturing plant in Phrapadaeng", says Jirasak Singamaneechai, Dow Thailand Country Manager and SCG-Dow Group Managing Director, “The cracker project in 2006 also received investment promotion and advanced support from the BOI, which has played an important role in supporting and developing the petrochemical industry in Thailand.”

Dow Expands in Thailand  

At the heart of the emerging Asian Nations, the world's fastest-growing economic region, Thailand continues to serve as a reliable logistics hub and an advantageous location for Dow to form partnerships and joint ventures for business development in the region.  Dow owes its expansion over the years to these regional alliances, as well as Thailand’s advanced infrastructure of electricity, water grids, pipe-line systems, deep-sea ports, and raw materials.

Throughout the company’s history in Thailand, Dow has expanded by constructing a number of integrated, world-scale manufacturing plants for polystyrene, ethylbenzene, styrene monomer, and polyethylene. Between 2006 and 2011, Dow formed a joint venture with SCG and international chemical and pharmaceutical group Solvay S.A.  The company also constructed a world-class production complex with an advanced naphtha cracker plant and downstream facilities in Industrial Estate in Map Ta Phut, Rayong, to produce polyethylene, specialty elastomers, propylene oxide, and hydrogen peroxide.  And in 2012, Dow constructed a propylene glycol plant and a polyolefin encapsulant films plant. These facilities have expanded Dow’s specialty products portfolios to address the world’s evolving chemical needs.

And according to Singamaneechai, the skill and quality of work from Thailand’s domestic workforce has continued to impress over the years and add to the overall investment appeal of Thailand. As the company has grown in the region, Dow has greatly increased the number of its Thai employees to approximately 1,000 in 2013, up from 400 in 2007. And the local talent holds positions in many areas of the company, including positions as high as Managing Director.

Dow’s Future Outlook in Asia and Beyond

Because Dow’s operations in Thailand currently represent the company’s largest manufacturing base in the Asia Pacific region, the country’s facilities and business will continue to be a driving force for growth in the coming decades. Dow Thailand is unquestionably a major priority for the global company, with its Thailand operations