Egco closes in on wind and solar joint venture

Egco closes in on wind and solar joint venture

Egco Group Plc expects to finalise a joint-venture deal for a 300-megawatt wind and solar power project this year.

"We're now in the study phase, but we definitely think wind and solar are good opportunities," said Vinit Tangnoi, president of the country's second-largest private power producer.
Egco is also looking at opportunities in the Philippines.
The company's 55-MW thin-film solar cell plant in Lop Buri province is 74.5% completed and scheduled to begin commercial operations in November.
Its three small power producer plants, each with 125-MW capacity, are in the process of signing purchase agreements with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand.
Egco's combined production capacity is now 5,048.9 MW from 14 power plants, with another five under development.
Its first-half net profit was at 2.97 billion, down by 31.7% from year-on-year.
The decline was due mainly to lower sales by Khanom Electricity Generating and BLCP Power and major maintenance costs at the Rayong power plant.
"We expect this year's net profit will meet the target of 5 billion baht, as no major overhauls are planned," said Mr Vinit, adding that the BLCP maintenance in the second half would have no effect on the bottom line.
He said Egco may enter into joint ventures to increase capacity at its power plant in the Philippines' Quezon province by 500 MW.
"We also plan to increase our acquisitions in the future on top of the 7 billion baht we're spending this year," said Mr Vinit, adding that negotiations were now being held with operators of plants in Indonesia and Vietnam.
"A 20-25% share is acceptable, but if we can we'd like to be the major shareholder [in each project]. But in the long term, we'll need to see the new government's power development plan and adapt it to our business model domestically."
Egco shares closed yesterday on the Stock Exchange of Thailand at 90 baht, unchanged, in trade worth 186 million baht.