Hello and welcome to the June issue of CEO Middle East.
This month, we focus on the theme of legacy – a subject that is never far from the minds of successful industry leaders. We are fortunate to have Montri Rawanchaikul, CEO of Thai energy giant PTTEP on our front cover. PTTEP will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year, and Rawanchaikul joined us for a look back at his tenure leading this storied energy firm.
“When we look back, 40 years is a long time. But we consider ourselves a relatively young company,” Rawanchaikul reflected. “When we were founded, the mission was to have an oil and gas company to provide energy security to Thailand. When I look back on PTTEP’s 40-year history, I actually see it in four periods.”
Given PTTEP’s milestone 40th anniversary upcoming, and Rawanchaikul’s impact over his tenure, our conversation inevitably turned to the topic of legacy. For Rawanchaikul, his focus for the future is on the people most affected by an energy company – the next generation.
“I would like to see the new generation that comes to work for this company, working with a plan in mind, to achieve a concept from the beginning to the end,” he said. “Then you can focus because you know where our expertise is and what we are good at.”
The energy transition also remains of key importance, according to the executive. However, while these technologies continue to mature, significant work still needs to be done in the interim. Turn to page 18 for the full story and Rawanchaikul’s thoughts on the future.
This month we also dedicate a special section to the Arabian Business Leadership Summit held by our sister title Arabian Business.
The event brought together top thought leaders and industry executives from across the region for engaging discussions on what it takes to be a true leader. I’d like to give special thanks to all our speakers for graciously sharing their time and expertise. Events like these would not be possible without the knowledge and experiences leaders are willing to provide.
I must also thank all those who attended – it was great to see so many people in the room engaging with the topics and each other. For those unable to join, be sure to check out our coverage starting on page 30.
Throughout this year, the success of the real estate market seems to be a topic that has never been very far from the headlines. Here in the UAE, property has gone from strength to strength, repeatedly breaking records month after month. We feature an extended section beginning on page 10 that examines a variety of trends in the market place – and I hope you find it as interesting as we did putting it together.
With that I’ll let you get to reading.
Until next time.