FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Acquiring Glow shares will not result in monopoly: GPSC

Acquiring Glow shares will not result in monopoly: GPSC

PTT Group’s Global Power Synergy (GPSC) has been insisting that the acquisition of Glow Energy shares will not create a monopoly in the electricity industry, while the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will finalise its inspection on the matter by the end of this month.

Toemchai Bunnag, GPSC chief executive officer and president, said this planned synergy with Glow aims to boost power efficiency and stability for investors in the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate and Eastern Economic Corridor as well as reduce operating expenses.
As for concerns voiced by some Glow customers, he said the GPSC will tell them that its acquisition of shares will have no impact and that all the conditions, price and service contracts will remain the same.
The power business is based on long-term contracts with agreed prices and the amount of purchase and sale. On average, Glow customers’ contracts are for more than 10 years.
In response to concerns that GPSC’s acquisition of Glow shares will lead to PTT Group’s monopoly in the Map Ta Phut area, Toemchai said, “GPSC is a private company listed on the stock exchange with stringent regulations. GPSC operates its business independently. Selling power and steam to companies of PTT Group is under the same conditions and standards for non-PTT Group customers.”
An unidentified source from the ERC said the Commerce Ministry has handed in its inspection result, showing that GPSC’s planned acquisition of Glow shares does not go against the trade competition law. The source said the ERC needs to consider the matter of competition promotion and reduction of monopoly, and should come up with an answer by the end of this month.
“If the result of GPSC’s planned acquisition of Glow shares goes against the law, the ERC will not transfer the licence for operation to GPSC. The ERC has to consider the laws thoroughly to be fair to all parties,” the source said. 
According to normal procedures, after the share acquisition is completed, GPSC is required to ask the ERC to transfer the licence for operating in the energy industry. 
Meanwhile, Korn Chatikavanij, chairman of policy at the Democrat Party, will hand the ERC a letter today asking it to see if GPSC’s planned acquisition could possibly translate into market dominance. 
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said yesterday that he has not seen Korn’s letter, adding that this was a matter of state enterprise with several related laws and there should not be any political meddling. 
 

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