Tailor-made urban expertise

Developing the Urban business in Asia Pacific is a big challenge, isn’t it? 

In Asia Pacific, designing new infrastructure and improving existing ones is crucial to supporting the development of regional activities.

Of course, there is a wide spread of different realities in the APAC region, as some geographies are still emerging while others are clearly among the most advanced in the world. I believe this diversity is a good element for Tractebel to demonstrate its added value, as our large capacity in urban projects, from master planning and conceptual design to detailed design, work supervision and execution, will give a powerful answer to the needs of our customer. Thus, I am convinced that the Urban business is a key lever for Tractebel’s development in the region.

The good news is that we are not starting from scratch in APAC. Our three regional offices, in Manilla, Bangkok and Jakarta, have already started to build teams of talented professionals. I am convinced that together with our existing geographical footprints (network of customers and partners, regional references) our Urban team will succeed at developing significant activity in the region to become a reference for Tractebel and for ENGIE.

Initially, how do you plan to expand the Urban activities of Tractebel APAC?

A significant investment has been made lately in human capital. The key factor is a deep understanding of the local needs, a local footprint, and good connections with decision makers. I joined the Urban team in APAC in June 2019 after spending 5 years as Managing Director at ENGIE Lab in Singapore. I bring to Tractebel APAC my knowledge of the Asian market, my regional network, as well as my connections with ENGIE APAC.

Naturally, there is also a crucial need for team members who have deep roots in the region, and who can bring important connections within the Urban Infrastructure market. Indeed, we have managed to attract talented people because they believe in our plans for expansion in the region. I can mention Maria QUIMPO, who leads this activity for Tractebel Philippines, coming from a reputable Australian competitor;  Arpamart CHANMEKA, previously in one of the biggest Thai engineering companies, who joined the Urban department in Tractebel Thailand to boost the business in the Mekong countries; and more recently, Edwin WIKANTA, who joined the team as Business Developer Manager in Indonesia with a solid Infrastructure background in Singapore. In other words, we are ready.

Business-wise, what are your next goals for further development?  

Our initial focus will be to keep building-up our capacities and references in Urban Design: promoting Tractebel’s Urban Design integrated approach for Smart Cities; developing competency in Transport & Mobility (for example, Rail projects in Vietnam); and growing our activity in Data Centres and District Cooling Systems (DCS). We will also boost our collaboration with ENGIE APAC and ENGIE Impact and strengthen our collaboration with Tractebel’s European Team with the objective that Urban APAC becomes a recognised excellence centre worldwide.

Additionally, infrastructure should be designed to enable a liveable and sustainable environment for urban populations. As Tractebel is aware of its social responsibilities and of the role it has to play in finding sustainable and low-carbon solutions in the fields of urban infrastructure, we will offer smart, balanced and tailor-made expertise to our customers in APAC.

CHANMEKA Arpamart, head of urban – Tractebel Thailand; QUIMPO Maria Theresa, head of urban – Tractebel Philippines; DROUET Etienne, Head of Urban – Tractebel Asia Pacific; WIKANTA Edwin Pramudita, Business Development Manager – Tractebel Indonesia