Mitr Phol Group

Mitr Phol Group

Industry	Food processing Bioenergy
Founded	1946 (1946)
Headquarters	Khlong Toei, Bangkok, Thailand
Area served	Thailand China Cambodia Laos
Key people	Isara Vongkusolkit, President[1]
Products	Sugar
Revenue	US$2.48 billion (2015 est)
Subsidiaries	Petro Green Co. Ltd Bio-Energy Co. Ltd.
Website	www.mitrphol.com

Mitr Phol Group is Thailand's and Asia's biggest sugar and bio-energy producer.

Mitr Phol Sugar Corp is a privately owned group of companies, mainly owned by the Vongkusolkit family. As of 2014, Mitr Phol is ranked as the world's fourth largest sugar producer, and the largest producer in Asia. It is Thailand's largest sugar producer and the second largest in China through its joint venture company East Asia Sugar. In addition to Thailand and China, Mitr Phol has operations and investments in Lao PDR, Cambodia, and most recently Australia. Its key business units include sugar, wood substitute materials, and renewable energy.

Sugar

In Thailand, Mitr Phol has six sugar mills, with a total processing capacity of 130,500 tons of sugar cane daily. Some mills have refineries attached and produce white sugar. The locations are:

• Suphan Buri Province ('Mitr Phol Danchang mill")
• Sing Buri Province ("Sing Buri mill")
• Chaiyaphum Province ("Mitr Phol Phu Khieo mill")
• Khon Kaen Province ("Mitr Phol Phu Viang mill")
• Kalasin Province ("Mitr Phol Kalasin mill")
• Loei Province ("Mitr Phol Phu Luang mill")

The yearly sugar cane processing capacity is about 20 million tons, yielding sugar output of approximately 2 million tons per year.

Outside Thailand, Mitr Phol has seven sugar mills in Guangxi Province, China. In Lao PDR, the "Mitr Lao mill" is in Savannakhet Province.

In 2012, Mitr Phol acquired a stake in the Australian sugar producer, MSF Sugar Limited.

History

Mitr Phol sugar business was established as a small family business in Ban Pong district, Rachaburi province, producing and trading condensed syrup to sugar mills in 1946. Later in the year 1956, the company formally introduced itself with an in-house space to produce its own sugar. In 1983, Mitr Phu Kieo Sugar Mill was constructed in Phu Kieo District, Chayuaphum Province, with the processing capacity of 27,000 tonnes per day of sugarcane. In the year 1990, Mitr Phol Sugar Mill in Suphanburi province was established with the processing capacity of 45,500 tonnes per day of sugarcanes. The company expanded its business internationally in the year 1993 to Guangxi province, People Rupublic of China with 4 mills including Ningming county, Chongzhou county, Funan county, and Tuo Lu county. Currently Mitr Phol owns 7 sugar mills in Guangxi County and is recognized in China with annual capacity of approximately 10 million tons of cane, or approximately 1.3 million tons of sugar per year. In 1994, Mitr Phol Sugar Mill (Suphanburi province) is the first mill in Thailand certified by ISO 9002 and has been continuously recognized until today with National Certificate of Excellence and Global Standards. In1995, Mitr Phol takeover the sugar company in Phu Viang District, Khon Kaen and named it itr Phu Viang Sugar Mill. In 1997, Mitr Phol again constructed sugar mill internationally in Hai Tung County, China. Later in the same year, Mitr Kalasin Sugar Mill was established, in Kunchinaray District, Kalasin Province with processing capacity of 23,000 tonnes per day of sugarcanes. In 2006, Mitr Phol broadened its production to Savannakhet Province, Laos and established Mitr Lao Sugar Co., Ltd. was established to develop on sugarcane farming project with advanced production technology with the products to export to the European Union. Mitr Phol further expanded its investments to Queensland State, Australia. The group assumed ownership of MSF sugar with the largest sugar manufacturers in Australia.

Sugar Products

1. Mitr Phol Pure Refined Sugar 2. Mitr Phol Hygiene Pack 3. Mitr Phol Syrup 4. Mitte Flavoured Syrup 5. Mitr Phol Coffee Sugar 6. Mitr Phol Icing Sugar 7. Mitr Phol Stick Sugar 8. Mitr Phol Calorie 9. Mitr Phol Gold Sugar 10. Mitr Phol Coconut Sugar 11. Mitr Phol Rock Sugar 12. Mitr Phol Brown Sugar 13. Mitr Phol Natural Cane Sugar

Wood substitute materials

A subsidiary company, Panel Plus Co. Ltd., manufactures particle board and MDF panels from bagasse and rubber wood chips. According to the company, it has the capacity to produce 300,000 cubic metres of particle board a year, 300,000 cubic metres of medium density fibre boards a year, and 23,500,000 square metres of melamine impregnated panels.^[2] It has plants in Chaiyaphum and Songkhla Provinces.

Renewable energy

Mitr Phol's subsidiary company Mitr Phol Bio-Fuel Co., Ltd., has four ethanol plants with total capacity of 1,100,000 liters per day in Suphan Buri, Chaiyaphum, Kalasin, and Tak Provinces. Molasses, a waste product from the production of sugar, is used as feed stock to produce ethanol which is used for blending in fuel as gasohol. Mitr Phol Bio-Fuel is Thailand's largest ethanol producer.

Another Mitr Phol subsidiary is Mitr Phol Bio-Power Co., Ltd. which runs several biomass power plants attached to sugar mills. These plants burn the bagasse from crushed sugar cane in order to power steam turbines to generate the power needed for the mill. Excess electricity is sold to the national power grid.

Investment

Mitr Phol has normal capital expenditure at around 6 billion THB per year. However, in 2016, during the press conference CEO Kisda Monthienvichian-chai said that 28 billion THB will be spent on sugar business for developing its facilities and water system. 15 billion THB will be spent on renewable energy business, 3 billion THB for investment plan for wood-substitute materials, 3.6 billion THB for overseas business, and 800 million THB to develop its logistics system. This budget for investment to develop its business spreading over the year 2016 to 2020. Mitr Phol announces the partnership with Olam International, with now acquiring 50% stake in Olam, aiming to complete the new sugar milling plant and operates in 2020. The facility is expected to process up to 1.2 million tonnes of sugarcanes from local farmers.

Related businesses

The Vongkusolkit family's related businesses include Banpu Public Company Limited, which is listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand, and the Erawan Group which owns various prime properties throughout the kingdom including the J.W. Marriott Bangkok Hotel, Ploenchit Center building, Amarin Plaza, and the Hyatt Erawan Hotel.

Asset

The sugar business currently accounts 42.8 % of Mitr Phol’s sales and service revenue. Energy contributes 17.8%, wood-substitute materials 4.6% and logistics 1.2%. For 2015/2016 growing season, Mitr Phol produced 3.43 million tonnes of sugar across all its locations. It earns the highest market share in Thailand sugar and sugarcane industry growing 1.86 million tonnes of sugar based on the production volume. In 2015, Mitr Phol total sales were 88,316 million THB consisting 80% of sugar segment. Thailand’s sugar production holds 43% while China made up 29%. Laos and Australia sugar production comprised 7% while power and ethanol segments comprise 14% of total revenues. During the first three quarter of 2016 Mitr Phol production decreases the production by 11.5% comparing to the prior year in 2015 to 3.43 million tonnes due to drought in the East Asia Region and low prices of sugar. Drought in this region drops major production countries output worldwide and is the first year of global sugar deficit in six years.

Award In 2015, Mitr Phol was awarded the Bonsucro Sustainability Award after helping sugarcane farmers shifted to advance technology faming and help reduce the cost of production while adopting new technology. Mitr Phol was the first company in Thailand and second firm in Asia to be validated by Bonsucro.

References

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