To be located within the existing ExxonMobil (Thailand) building in Bangkok, the centre will cost the US oil giant 160 million baht to establish and create 600 jobs, mostly for Thais.
The Board of Investment has approved investment incentives for the project, and ExxonMobil is expected to apply for additional tax privileges with the Finance Ministry for companies establishing regional operating headquarters (ROH) in Thailand.
ExxonMobil's regional headquarters is the first project of its kind approved by the BoI since the tax incentives offered under a former BoI regime were transferred to the Revenue Department.
The Bangkok Post said according to the BoI, half of the planned 600 ExxonMobil employees would be rotated from the company's existing refinery and downstream businesses. The centre would manage all ExxonMobil businesses in the region, with a revenue target of 500 million baht a year.
An executive of ExxonMobil's Thai office told the paper the company chose Thailand because the Thai operation had the capacity to serve other units in the region as well as domestic operations.
"Also, we have been attracted by the new incentives for regional hub buildings here and the BoI's approval would be our gateway to grant incentives provided by the Revenue Department,'' said Pipop Pruecksamas, director of Esso (Thailand) Plc, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil.
"Thailand is our first headquarters for the Asia-Pacific. Similar centres are operating in the US and Europe. It's time for us to consolidate these services for the whole region in order to be more efficient."
