Thailand Cement Maker on Lookout for Growth Openings.

Byline: Nareerat Wiriyapong

Aug. 5--Challenges await Cemex SA, the world's third-largest cement maker, to build recognition among Thai clients while its production capacity is limited.

Nevertheless, the new chief of Cemex Thailand said it was looking to develop a larger presence in the Thai cement market which had resumed healthy growth and showed a promising outlook.

"Cemex has been exploring business opportunities in Thailand where the market is very attractive and a growth projection is the best in Southeast Asia right now and in the near future," said country director Vicente Saiso.

The construction and cement businesses in Thailand have received a boost from the improved economy, with the country poised to record the highest growth in Southeast Asia this year and next, he added.

Mr Saiso, 37, took the top post at Cemex Thailand two months ago, replacing Jaime Ruiz de Haro who had spent almost three years here before being transferred to head operations in the Philippines. Mr Saiso moved from Indonesia where he worked for three years as vice-president for planning.

Cemex, ranked third worldwide after Lafarge of France and Holcim of Switzerland, now controls a 99 percent stake in a cement plant to the north of Bangkok formerly owned by Italian-Thai Development, a leading Thai construction firm. One year after its acquisition of Saraburi Cement in 2001, Cemex enlarged its capacity by 40 percent to 800,000 tonnes a year.