Ratch inks JV for nuclear power plant in China

The three partners signed the equity joint-venture contract for establishing Guangxi Fangchenggang Nuclear Power (II) Co, which will develop, construct and operate Fangchenggang NPP Phase II.

The investment by Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding (Ratch) was conducted through Ratch China Power, a subsidiary, with a 10-per-cent shareholding.

CGN and GIG hold 61 and 39 per cent respectively. 

Ratch chief executive officer Rum Herabat said yesterday that the transaction marked a milestone of successful business expansion into China.

Partnering with CGN, a leading nuclear-power producer, Ratch is ready to pursue potential investment in clean-energy projects in Thailand and elsewhere in Asean, he said. 

Fangchenggang NPP Phase II is valued at around Bt200 billion. Ratch will inject capital of Bt7.5 billion in the project and dividend income from the deal is expected to be generated in 2021, under the 30-year power-purchase contract.

“CGN’s world-class expertise and experience in nuclear power, with its integrated range of nuclear power service, has been a major factor in Ratch’s investment decision-making,” Rum said. 

“It’s the fact that CGN presently processes 16 operating units of nuclear power plants, with a total capacity of 17.08 gigawatts – accounting for 60 per cent of the entire capacity in China – and 11 units of under-construction plants, with a total capacity of 13.64GW – 50 per cent of China’s capacity.

“It also owns clean-energy facilities in China, including hydroelectric power plants, solar farms, wind farms and natural gas, and invests in a number of nuclear power and clean-energy projects in Europe and Asia,” the CEO said. 

“Ratch has also taken into an account the social and environmental benefits to support our decision-making. It is an opportunity for Thai technical personnel in developing and enhancing their skills and experiences by sharing nuclear-related knowledge and techniques with CGN, which has more than 30 years’ expertise in this field.

“The achievement and experience of CGN in low-carbon environment management is another area for learning, because it is important in curbing climate change,” he added.

Fangchenggang Nuclear Power Project is regarded as a 6,000-megawatt project, which is divided into three phases for development.

Phase I comprises Units 1 and 2, which are already constructed and operating.

Phase II, in which Ratch is partially involved, comprises Units 3 and 4, each with 1,180MW capacity. 

Construction of Unit 3 began last month and is expected to be completed within five years. 

Fangchenggang Nuclear Power Project Phase II is in southern China’s Guangxi Autonomous Region, 45 kilometres from the border with Vietnam.

Electricity from the power plant, which will have a 60-year operational life span, will be distributed to domestic off-taker Ratch under a power-purchase contract. 

The transaction increases the Thai company’s power equity capacity by 236MW.

Ratch’s clean-energy capacity from hydroelectric, wind, solar and nuclear power will rise to 720.79MW, with its total capacity from fossil-based and clean energy surging to 6,814.12MW.