The Egger Group has acquired a 25.1% stake in Thai wood-based material manufacturer Panel Plus Co, for an undisclosed sum, to strengthen its position in Asia.

Panel Plus Co produces a range of wood-based materials, including chipboard and MDF boards, with core markets in Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam.

Egger has 22 production plants  in Europe and America and sales offices in Shanghai, China, Tokyo in Japan and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

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Chief financial officer of Egger Group Thomas Leissing commented on the investment decision: “As a significant growth market, Asia plays an important role in our strategic considerations.

“We have been considering expanding our presence there for some time now. In Panel Plus, we have found the ideal partner in this respect.

“Panel Plus has state-of-the-art production sites and a product portfolio that is perfectly tailored to regional requirements.

“We are convinced that we will benefit greatly from their local expertise and will be able to exploit further growth opportunities together. We are delighted with this strategic partnership.”

Founded in 1990, Panel Plus Co has a main production plant  in Hat Yai in the southern Thai province of Songkhla.

There is a raw chipboard line, two MDF lines as well as in-house impregnation units and 10 lamination lines, which uses a large proportion of energy from the company’s own biomass power plants.

Panel Plus has additional upgrading capacities at a production site in Samut Sakorn, Thailand.

Two further upgrading facilities in Malaysia and Vietnam are under construction and will become operational in 2024.

Panel Plus employs around 800 people and produces a total volume of 800,000 m3 wood-based materials per year.

It is a subsidiary of the Mitr Phol Group, a private group of companies whose main business areas include sugar production, renewable energy, and wood-based material production.

CEO of Panel Plus Co Amporn Kanjanakumnerd said: “From the very beginning, Panel Plus has been committed to innovative products and environmental consciousness. Creating added value, a zero-waste concept and sustainable growth was always our focus.

“We are excited to announce our strategic partnership with Egger, one of the world’s largest wood-based materials manufacturers.

“This collaboration will enable us with a wide range of resources and capabilities with cutting-edge technology that we can utilise to better serve our customers.

“By combining Egger’s deep industry knowledge and expertise with our own local innovative solutions, we are confident this new venture will be beneficial for our customers as we will leverage each other’s strengths with striving for excellence in our pursuit.”