BOI approves privileges for Western Digital’s investment expansion
Digital storage solutions leader wins privilege approval for investment expansion in Ayutthaya and Prachinburi
The Board of Investment has approved investment privileges for Western Digital Storage Technology (Thailand) Co Ltd’s plan to expand its investment in Thailand by 23.516 billion baht, the BOI chief said on Monday.
BOI Office secretary-general Narit Therdsteerasukdi said an authorised sub-committee of the BOI approved the request of Western Digital for privileges for its further investment in hard disk drives and peripherals manufacturing in Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate in Ayutthaya and 304 Industrial Park in Prachin Buri.
Western Digital from the United States is a global technology company that specialises in data storage solutions. Established in 1970, it has been at the forefront of developing and manufacturing hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), and other storage devices for both the consumer and enterprise markets.
The WD established its factory in Thailand in 1997 and has been continually expanding its investments. The WD now employs more than 28,000 workers in Thailand, Narit said.
He said WD’s investment has benefited Thailand in several ways. For example, it has helped develop IT personnel in the country under server projects, including the Talent Mobility and the project to promote renewable energy in factories as well as a project to develop smart factories.
Narit said the latest expansion project of WD would greatly benefit Thailand’s economy. It is expected to increase the value of HDD exports by 200 billion baht a year and lead to the employment of some 10,000 more employees.
The investment expansion would also result in more procurement of local materials, including circuit boards, plastic and metal parts for HDDs and power supplies. The BOI expects WD to buy local materials worth some 81 billion baht a year, Narit added.
He said the BOI also sees that the making of HDDs still has a bright future as storage is essential for the expansion of cloud storage and data centre services.
He also noted that Thailand is a hub of HDD making and 80% of HDDs used globally are made in Thailand.
