At the ACMA Business Forum 2025: “Now or Never – Breaking Thailand’s Stagnation”, discussions centered on how Thailand can maintain its competitive edge against regional peers and seize opportunities from shifting economic flows out of China and India. One highlight was the “Reinventing Industries – From Traditional to Innovation-Driven Growth” session, which explored how established companies are adapting to rapid technological change.
The panel featured Mr. Nopadej Karnasuta, Co-President – Thailand Business and Energy & Industrial Solutions Business at B.Grimm Power Public Company Limited (SET: BGRIM); Ms. Sineenuch Kokanutaporn, Managing Director of Thai Eastern Group Holdings Public Company Limited (SET: TEGH); and Dr. Tanupol Virunhagarun, CEO of BDMS Wellness Clinic and BDMS Wellness Resort, Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Public Company Limited (SET: BDMS). Each executive shared their company’s transformation journey and strategies to stay relevant in an era defined by innovation and sustainability.
B.Grimm Power (BGRIM), Thailand’s oldest company, has evolved far beyond its origins as Siam Dispensary during the reign of King Rama V. Over the decades, BGRIM played a role in nation-building projects such as the Rangsit Canal, Thailand’s first telegraph line to Germany, and even ASEAN’s first planetarium. The company entered the energy sector in 1996 with the first industrial estate power plant, later expanding into renewable energy with a solar project in Vietnam in 2019.
Today, BGRIM is venturing into digital infrastructure, having recently begun construction of its first data center in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) in partnership with Digital Edge (Singapore) Holdings Pte. Ltd. According to Mr. Nopadej, the initiative reflects the company’s shift toward “Digital Infrastructure as a Service” in Thailand.
He credited the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for supporting the nation’s first green bond issued by BGRIM and emphasized that many of the company’s innovations, including the data center project, originated from employees rather than top-down management.
Meanwhile, Thai Eastern Group Holdings (TEGH) is undergoing a significant transition from its traditional agricultural roots in natural rubber to a diversified portfolio in renewable energy and organic waste management.
Ms. Sineenuch highlighted the company’s efforts to comply fully with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) by scrutinizing its supply chain. With financial backing from commercial banks in 2005, TEGH has advanced its circular economy model, aiming for zero waste to landfill. With professional management, the capital from the bank was more than enough to improve all of the company’s ecosystem.
She stated the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) economy model could become the center of EEC and Asia, leading to low carbon emission. With these transformations, TEGH believes that having a good community, specialty and sustainability could lead to a premium in its products’ value.
On the healthcare front, Dr. Tanupol Virunhagarun underscored Thailand’s global leadership in medical tourism, but noted that the focus must now extend beyond treatment to preventive wellness. He pointed out that while Thailand’s population enjoys a life expectancy about 10 years longer than the global average, the gap between lifespan and healthspan remains the same—roughly a decade of poor health before death. His vision for BDMS Wellness Center is to narrow that gap, enabling people to enjoy healthier, more productive years late in life.
Together, the three executives illustrated how Thailand’s legacy companies are reinventing themselves—whether through clean energy, circular economy initiatives, or healthcare innovation—to thrive in a fast-changing global landscape.
