Construction firm Italian-Thai Development is under fire after consecutive crane collapses
Italian-Thai Development, one of Thailand’s largest construction conglomerates, is in the spotlight after successive fatal incidents on its building sites.
On Jan. 14, a crane collapsed onto a passenger train in the country’s northeast, killing at least 32 people. Just one day later, another crane fell on a highway project in Samut Sakhon province, leading to two deaths. Italian-Thai Development helmed both projects, and so on Jan. 16, Thailand’s Transport Ministry ordered a 15-day construction halt on more than ten projects overseen by the company, citing a “danger to the public.”
Italian-Thai Development released a statement to Thailand’s stock exchange on Jan. 15, noting that it had started the process of assessing damage and will take responsibility by providing compensation. Fortune has reached out to Italian-Thai Development for further comment.
The construction company is also linked to the collapse of a partially-constructed skyscraper in Bangkok last March, following a devastating earthquake in nearby Myanmar. The disaster killed almost 100 people.
Following the skyscraper incident, Premchai Karnasuta, the CEO of Italian-Thai Development, was indicted alongside 22 others, on charges including document forgery and professional negligence causing death. (Executives from China Railway No. 10, a Chinese state-owned construction firm that partnered with Italian-Thai Development, were also charged.)
Italian-Thai Development, with $2 billion in 2024 revenue, ranks No. 174 on Fortune’s Southeast Asia 500 list, which measures the region’s largest firms by revenue.
Thai businessman Uthai Vongnai and Italian engineer Giovanni Tani founded Italian-Thai Development in 1958, after the two worked together salvaging five ships that sank in the Chao Phraya River. The firm expanded to sectors like real estate, manufacturing and mining, and has had a hand in building some of Thailand’s largest public infrastructure projects, like Bangkok’s subway system.
Still, the firm has had a rocky few years. They lost a total of 6 billion Thai baht ($192 million) between 2020 and 2022, according to the Bangkok Post, in part after its work in Myanmar was stalled after a 2021 coup and imposition of military rule.
Karnasuta, Italian-Thai Development’s CEO, was also jailed for illegal poaching in 2021, after he was caught with hunting gear and animal carcasses in one of Thailand’s wildlife sanctuaries. He was released on parole in 2023.
Italian-Thai Development has been forced to slash costs and dump several overseas units. The firm’s market value plunged from a peak of 12 billion baht ($384 million) in 2021 to just 1 billion baht ($32 million) in 2026.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com