ABG in Thailand: The first foray of India’s global conglomerate

56 years on, Aditya Birla Group has presence in the South East Asian nation through nine plants across textiles, chemicals and carbon black sectors.

In November 2019, when Aditya Birla Group was celebrating 50 years of business in Thailand, Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi was personally in attendance as the Chief Guest of the event in capital Bangkok. As much as the celebration was about a leading Indian business group’s solid presence in Thailand, it was also a testimony to the strong commercial and cultural links that united the two nations. Thailand was the first country where Aditya Birla Group set up its overseas operation back in 1969; this success fuelled the Group's rise as the first home-grown Indian multinational.

Aditya Vikram Birla was the first Indian industrialist to venture overseas through a spinning unit in the South East Asian country. In the pre-liberalisation era when investing and expanding abroad was a challenging proposition for Indian companies, he saw the potential in setting up business in Thailand and mobilised resources against all odds to set up Indo Thai Synthetics. Today, 56 years on, the USD 67-bn conglomerate is one of the most successful Indian businesses in the country with nine plants spanning sectors such as textiles, carbon black and chemicals. Aditya Birla Group has invested more than USD 2-bn in Thailand over the years, globally emerging as a leading player in the businesses it operates in. 
 

Organic Growth

The Group’s pioneering venture in Thailand - Indo Thai Synthetics - is the South East Asian country’s leading synthetic yarn spinner and the largest exporter of synthetic yarn, with a 50% share of the exports. Indo Thai Synthetics commenced operations with a capacity of 12,768 spindles; today, the facility is powered by 60,768 Ring Spindles and 3,840 Open End Spinning positions.

Aditya Birla Chemicals (Thailand) Limited (ABCTL), a part of the Group’s chemical business, is another major business in Thailand, engaged in the production of major chemical groups, such as chlor-alkali, epichlorohydrin, epoxy resins, phosphates and sulphites. The company has three manufacturing facilities – Rayong, Samutprakarn and Saraburi. Established in 1984, the Phosphates division has successfully transformed itself from being solely a technical grade producer to one offering a high-performance speciality range of functional food ingredients.

With a reach spanning over 90 countries, Aditya Birla Chemicals Thailand’s Advanced Materials division is among the top-3 epoxy players in the world. Even as its Sulphites division is one of the largest producer of powdered sulphites in the world, catering to various industries and applications like mining, water treatment and pulp & paper, the Chlor-Alkali division (CAD) of ABCTL serves as a source of raw material for the Group’s other businesses in Thailand, besides being the largest exporter of chlorine to ASEAN and Australia.  

Thai Rayon, another Aditya Birla Group company in Thailand, is the pioneer as well as sole manufacturer of Viscose Staple Fibre (VSF) in Thailand. The company was incorporated in 1974 and has been listed on the Thailand Stock Exchange since 1984. Almost two-third of Thai Rayon's VSF production is directly exported to more than 20 countries worldwide. Birla Carbon, carbon black flagship of Aditya Birla Group, has a manufacturing unit in Angthong. With a new manufacturing facility in Rayong, Birla Carbon has leapfrogged into a different league in the industry in terms of safety, environmental stewardship, and innovative products and solutions for its customers, while developing a symbiotic relationship with communities around it. 
 

Thai Acrylic Fibre: Driving specialty and sustainability globally

Part of the flagship Aditya Birla Group, Thai Acrylic Fibre (TAF) has established itself as one of the world’s largest producers of acrylic fibre; the company is currently the third-largest acrylic fibre manufacturer globally, and one of the largest outside China and Turkey. Headquartered in Bangkok with a state-of-the-art facility in Saraburi, Thailand, the company has been shaping the acrylic fibre industry with its commitment to innovation, sustainability, and customer-centric solutions. The company exports over 95% of its output to key textile and technical textile markets worldwide. India alone consumes 7,500-8,000 tons a month  , with the company’s global reach extending across South Asia, South East Asia, China, Turkey, Europe, Latin America and Africa.

While traditionally, acrylic fibres have been associated with sweaters, blankets and winter wear, TAF has redefined the category by diversifying into specialty applications. While Birlacril™ is the standard raw white range of acrylic fibre, widely used across apparel and blends, Regel™ is a pioneering chemically-recycled fibre made from pre-consumer waste generated in TAF’s own operations, achieving up to 75% recycled content. With Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certification, it is the only acrylic fibre worldwide with such recognition, approved by leading global brands such as H&M and Inditex. By expanding beyond traditional uses, TAF has created opportunities in upholstery, lingerie, outerwear and technical textiles, blending acrylic with polyester, cotton and other fibres, while maintaining high standards of sustainability with eco-conscious processes.

With its robust presence in Thailand across sectors, Aditya Birla Group continues to be a pioneering Indian business house in the South East Asian country, growing from strength to strength with each passing year.