BANGKOK - (May 30, 2003) Earlier this week, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) awarded a $342,000 grant to the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) of Thailand to partially fund a feasibility study on the improvement of power quality and distribution in Thailand. Mr. Geoffrey Jackson, USTDA Assistant to the Director for Policy Planning and Regional Director for Asia, signed the grant agreement in a ceremony on May 28, 2003, at the PEA Head Office in Bangkok. Mr. Paichit Thienpaitoon, Governor of PEA, signed on behalf of the Grantee.

PEA currently manages electricity distribution and retail to 99 percent of Thailand, excluding the Bangkok metropolitan area. Power generation, transmission, and distribution are high development priorities in Thailand, as economic growth projections from 2002 to 2006 forecast significant increases in the country's energy demands. The USTDA grant will assist PEA in its efforts to increase power reliability over its entire service area. These planned improvements will enable Thailand to continue its energy-sector deregulation and privatization goals.

The USTDA-funded study will examine the technical, financial and organizational requirements of PEA's planned distribution dispatching center and optical fiber backbone communications system. If the project is implemented, U.S. firms will be able to participate in PEA's procurement of digital dispatching and optical fiber equipment. A team of U.S. consultants, led by KEMA Incorporated of McLean, Virginia, will perform the study and contribute additional resources toward its completion.

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries. The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, feasibility studies, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment. USTDA's strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development. In carrying out its mission, USTDA gives emphasis to economic sectors that may benefit from U.S. exports of goods and services.

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