Thailand’s Triple Convention Wins with IEEE PES

September 14, 2022, Bangkok: Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (or TCEB), in collaboration with IEEE Power & Energy Society (Thailand) (or IEEE PES - Thailand), has successfully secured 3 international power and energy conferences to be held in 3 Thai MICE cities over the course of 3 years: IEEE PES APPEEC 2023 in Chiang Mai, IEEE ISC2 2024 in Pattaya and IEEE PES GTD Asia 2025 in Bangkok. The three conferences are expected to attract over 10,000 participants from around the world, generate more than 837 million baht for Thailand, and showcase the country’s caliber and readiness in the MICE and power & energy arenas.  

In addition to the role as the key driver of Thailand’s MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions) industry and, by which, develop the economy and distribute income to all sectors in a sustainable way, TCEB also acts as “National Bidder” – proposing the country and its abundant host city options to attract world-class events. In 2019 (pre-covid year), Thailand’s MICE sector generated national economic impact by expenditure at approx. 280,000 million baht, by value added at 277,000 million baht, created approx. 410,000 jobs and generated taxes payment at around 20,000 million baht.    

With TCEB’s and the Thai MICE industry’s preparedness and continued work during the hiatus, including efforts put into conventions and world-events bidding and planning, the MICE sector promptly bounced back once the Thai Government announced the country’s reopening. Since then, international associations and organizations in various fields have already held their events in Thailand.  The latest achievement came triply when TCEB and IEEE PES – Thailand, in its collaborative international conventions bidding journey, jointly secured the right for three MICE cities in Thailand to be the host city of three individual power & energy conferences for three consecutive years. The three events are IEEE PES APPEEC 2023 in Chiang Mai, IEEE ISC2 2024 in Pattaya, and IEEE PES GTD Asia 2025 in Bangkok. 

TCEB’s Senior Vice President Nichapa Yoswee said “Thailand’s success in winning the three consecutive international power & energy conferences is the result of TCEB’s strategic planning and strong collaboration with local associations and partners including the targeted host cities. The partnership collectively elevates the event’s owners’ confidence in bringing forward its financial investment and world-class intellectual knowhow to Thailand. The three events in Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Bangkok over the course of 2023-2025 are forecast to attract more than 10,000 participants from around the world, generate national economic impact by expenditure at approx. 837 million baht, by value added at 465 million baht, create approx. 586 jobs, and generate taxes payment at around 29 million baht. They will also be a great opportunity for Thai professionals and students in related fields to have access to world-class knowledge from experts in power, energy, and smart cities from around the world. The positive impacts and legacies will encompass economic, social, and subject matter advancement aspects for Thailand and especially the host cities. This resonates greatly with TCEB’s strategy in using MICE to drive local economy throughout Thailand and uplifting MICE events in the 10 strategic MICE cities and more.”

Thailand being selected as the host destination for the three power and energy conventions underlines the country’s capabilities and readiness for the fields, both in the subject matter and intellectual capitals. Local host association like IEEE PES – Thailand plays important part in driving the power and energy advancement in Thailand which will help increase the country’s opportunity for world-class events in the future. 

IEEE PES - Thailand’s Senior Vice Chairman and Thailand Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA)’s Deputy Governor Somchai Homklinkaew unveiled the three conferences’ details “This is another success story in the cooperation between our society and TCEB in pushing Thailand as host country for major world conferences. The 15th Annual Asia-Pacific Power & Energy Engineering Conference or IEEE APPEEC 2023 to be held in December 2023 in Chiang Mai is expected to attract around 700 participants; the IEEE International Smart Cities Conference or ISC2 2024, the main annual conference of IEEE Smart Cities, is being held in 2024 in Pattaya, Chonburi Province, and forecast to attract more than 500 participants; while we anticipate that more than 10,000 participants will attend the IEEE PES GTD Grand International Conference and Exposition Asia or GTD Asia 2025,  the largest international conference and exposition on power & energy, which will take place in 2025 in Bangkok.” 

In addition to Thailand’s readiness in power and energy engineering fields, proposing the right host city in the bidding process is also a key factor in winning the conferences for Thailand. 

Vice Governor of Chiang Mai Weerapan Dee-on said “Research focusing on energy conservation and renewable energy in Chiang Mai are the subject-matter knowledge sharable at the conference. These studies combine global knowledge with local processes and resources. This, coupled with Chiang Mai city development plans and support from the public and private sectors, will boost Chiang Mai’s development in many areas, in particular sustainable energy for better quality of life. In addition, power and energy engineering, to which Chiang Mai University gives priority and which requires world-class knowledge and expertise, will become a key tool in driving social development projects at both provincial and national levels in the future.”  

Deputy Mayor of Pattaya Titipun Pettrakul added “from NEO Pattaya concept to Better Pattaya strategy, Pattaya is ready to utilize technology in driving business, tourism, and overall livelihood. After the completion of U-Tapao Airport and the High-Speed Rail Linking Three Airports Project, the city expects heightened tourists and MICE travelers. The IEEE ISC2 in 2024 will be a platform for knowledge, technology, and experience exchange for Pattaya in its path to smart city development, and with a goal in becoming “city of opportunity, balanced economy and quality of life for all”. We look forward for us to push forward clean energy for sustainability together.”  

Deputy Director-General of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Dept, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) Sing Limpirat shared similar view “Bangkok is ready as host city. It puts a priority on renewable energy as the city has large population and is also a business and technology hub. It has development strategies and plans from the state, ministries, and other government agencies with focus on research and collaboration with private and civil sectors to ensure clean energy and sustainable energy conservation. The upcoming IEEE PES GTD Asia in 2025 will provide great benefits to all sectors in Bangkok and other provinces while also upgrading academic knowledge, most useful for students and professionals in the fields of power and energy engineering.” 

During the press conference, Nichapa Yoswee, on behalf of TCEB, also expressed appreciation towards IEEE PES - Thailand for its commitment in developing the power and energy fields and professionals in Thailand through international conferences.  She also thanked the IEEE Power & Energy Society and IEEE Smart Cities Headquarters in New Jersey, USA, for recognizing Thailand’s potential as a platform for knowledge and experience exchange, and the 3 MICE cities for support and partnership as the host destinations. 

“TCEB will continue our strong partnerships with IEEE PES - Thailand in pushing for more international conventions to Thai MICE cities. I trust that participants of the three power and energy conferences in the upcoming three years will get to share knowledge and experiences in the impressive setting of our three MICE cities, surrounding by the warm welcoming and hospitality of the Thai people,” she concluded.