What the owner of the company in the eye of a cadmium waste storm told Thai police

Jessada Kengrungruangchaia, the director of J & B Metal Co Ltd in Samut Sakhon, along with his lawyer, appeared before the police to acknowledge charges and was questioned on the stocks of cadmium waste found in the company’s warehouse.

Jessada and his wife, who are directors of the company, requested to see the information and the complaints, and charges being pressed against them so that they could provide accurate explanations based on that information.

He informed police that the cadmium waste came from a purchase contract between Bound and Beyond Company and himself, with a purchase price of 1.25 baht per kilogram.

Jessada said he had participated in an auction where he successfully bid for all the industrial waste, competing against three other companies.

"If we're talking about finding the real culprit, we must go back to the origin, to the source, to determine if everything was done correctly," said Jessada.

The contract specifies that Jessada's company, J & B, is the buyer and the waste disposer. However, the title of the deal calls it a "Cadmium Waste Purchase Agreement”. On being questioned by investigators about whether the waste was for sale or disposal, Jessada reportedly told them that ultimately the waste was to be exported to Laos to Chinese buyers there. He told police that he was trying to transport the waste according to the Basel Convention agreement to have it disposed of and separated into different types of waste, for which he was in the process of requesting permission from the Department of Industrial Works. But because this matter was in the news, no action could be taken.

The previous sale involved contacting Mr Zhang, a Chinese man, for a quantity of 5,000 tons, which were then shipped to Chonburi province. The sale of the waste to Mr Zhang was not destined for Laos, Jessada clarified.

The batches intended for sale in Laos were under negotiation with Chinese buyers to determine the purchase quantity and ongoing analysis of the contents of each bag to identify the substances present, he told the investigators.

Police have revealed that Jessada held a licence for the disposal of cadmium and aluminium, but the purchase agreement stated that he had taken custody of the waste as a buyer for disposal. Police said Jessada has machinery for disposal, but it was currently under repairs, and that they would need to inspect this machinery as well.

Police said their investigation found that Jessada had bought all the industrial waste for resale, which was not allowed according to the contract terms.

Jessada said the waste needed to be deposited in more than one place because the storage warehouse was not big enough. He mentioned that he would handle everything, including renting additional warehouse space and transporting the waste to Mr. Zhang's company.

Jessada maintained that he had followed all the correct procedures from the beginning to the end. He revealed that J & B Co, as a smelting and casting facility, had participated in an industrial waste auction and purchased the waste for 8 million baht to resell. He stated that he needed zinc along with copper, with cadmium being a component that was only 35% of the total waste and hence not highly dangerous.

He explained that he had to deposit the waste at various locations due to the large quantity, which required renting warehouses. He reportedly said that as a trader, besides disposing of the waste, he also sold some of it when the turnover was insufficient. This included the sale to Mr. Zhang. He reportedly also admitted that the sale was improper, as it involved the resale of the waste without proper authorisation.

He said that selling the waste in Laos would fetch a higher price than selling to Mr Zhang at 8.25 baht per kilogram.

Jessada confirmed that his business had no behind-the-scenes operators and that he had been running this business for over 40 years. He denied any political involvement.