Many of you may wonder why the project is called “Hing Hoi”. It’s from an analogy that where there are fireflies, there is light. One firefly may only bring a small flicker, but hundreds, thousands of fireflies coming together could create great bright light. Similarly, CK Power Public Company Limited (CKPower), the producer of renewables-based electricity, uses its knowhow to build on its social initiatives through the Hing Hoi Project. This is how CKPower brings light and good quality of life to local communities.
Mr. Thanawat Trivisvavet, Managing Director, CK Power PLC, said “The Hing Hoi Project is CKPower’s principal CSR initiative that has been running continuously since 2016. The aim is to apply the knowhow and knowledge that the people at CKPower have in renewable energy and engineering to reducing shortages while increasing the potential of the communities and societies around our power plants and the remote areas in Thailand and the Lao PDR. The goal is to create awareness, engagement and social responsibility for all employees.”
Moreover, the company hopes to build a giver DNA among CKPower’s people into social value through 3 Cs – Competency in clean energy engineering, Co-Creation to share with society clean energy and Cooperation by getting together employees, communities and stakeholders for the cause. The 3 Cs are executed through the “Competency-Co-Creation-Cooperation-Connection” strategy. Competency means that CKPower uses its capabilities to empower communities, societies and stakeholders. Co-Creation is the use of innovative ideas and processes for sustainable development. Cooperation is the engagement of employees with stakeholders. Leading to Connection; which is to work together with stakeholders for sustainable development.
Mr. Thanawat added that: “The Hing Hoi Project was the result of CKPower conducting survey of the local communities to learn how they are like and what they need in terms of basic public utilities such as water supply and electricity as well as education. We want children and youngsters to have equal access to basic education and to have an environment conducive to learning. The activities are carried out by CKPower’s people at all levels and evaluation is made at least once a year to see if we achieve the goals intended. The young generation in our company and local communities are also motivated to play a part in the project as much as possible to ensure sustainability from generation to generation.”
The Hing Hoi Project of the past five years began in 2016 (Year 1). In the first year, CKPower built a solar-powered school building for Pu Kham Noi village and built a hydropower turbine generator for Mae Pa Klang village in Sop Moei district of Mae Hong Son province. In 2017 (Year 2), the company continued its initiative at Ban Mae Ler Border Patrol Police Learning Center in Mae Hong Son’s Mae Sariang district, where improvement was made to the learning building, a check dam was built along with a solar-powered pump reservoir with solar cells installed to power the water pump. Improvement was also made to the landscape surrounding the learning center.
In 2018-2019 (Year 3), at the behest of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, CKPower built a royal project for the development of children and youth in Ban Mae Mu Nai in Chiang Mai’s Mae Chaem district. With Her Royal Highness’ permission, the project was named “Ban Mae Mu Nai Border Patrol Police Learning Center under the Patronage of CK Power PLC”. The center consists of a learning building, a library and a road lighting system – all powered by solar energy. There are also a dormitory for the teaching staff, a dormitory with bathrooms for schoolchildren from remote areas, a canteen and a flag pole square. Improvement was also made to the surrounding landscape.
In 2019 (Year 4), an initiative was taken in line with the Sustainable Power for The Future Generation principle. Called “Huen Khiang Hong (Faifah)” - a community or house near the power plant, the activity involved developing the area of Ban Kang School in Luang Prabang province, the Lao PDR, which is located near the Xayaburi Hydroelectric Power Plant. Knowledge was shared with the community on hydropower and natural resource conservation. Sport kits and equipment were handed over to schoolchildren. The 4th year of the project also saw an activity in Thailand at Bandu (Saharat Wittaya) School in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Pak Thong Chai district, near the Bangkhenchai Solar Power Plant. Through its ‘Hero! Solar Zero Waste’ initiative, the company provided training on the environment preservation and plastic use reduction and donated computers to support youth education.
For 2020 (Year 5) Hing Hoi Project, CKPower visited Wat Kudi Prasit School in Wang Noi district of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, near the Bangpa-in Cogeneration Power Plant to repaint the school building and lay a new foundation for small children’s playground using shock reducing materials to minimize fall injuries. Improvement was made to the landscape of the school’s small garden and science park. To promote better educational opportunities for youngsters, the company also improved the reading pavilion for parents and children and encouraged its staff to make desks and chairs from Paper Mache for small children to create an environment suitable for learning for students.
“I had the opportunity to go on a field trip of our Hing Hoi Project every year and had carried out activities with the staff members representing our company and the people in each community. We saw children’s smiles and happy eyes of people in the communities. It brought light to our hearts and made us at CKPower very happy. We believe we can empower the communities with the Hing Hoi Project as we bring our capabilities in renewable energy engineering to good use in line with CKPower’s main mission to be one of the region’s largest producers of renewables-based electricity with one of lowest carbon footprints. We are ready to support the net zero greenhouse gas emission policy at both national and global levels in concrete ways to help with the global warming in the long term. To achieve sustainable development, we will continue to build on our community development initiatives to provide better quality of life through the Hing Hoi Project, bringing light to needed communities, in parallel with our focus on renewable energy business. Despite it being just a small benefactor, it is able to work with other stakeholders to bring forth a great light – akin to a swarm of fireflies coming together.” said Mr. Thanawat.
