THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

BCPG BUYS STAKE IN PHILIPPINE WIND POWER PLANT

BCPG BUYS STAKE IN PHILIPPINE WIND POWER PLANT

Thailand-based BCPG has signed a sale and purchase agreement to acquire an interest in a 50-megawatt wind-power project in the Philippines as part of its expansion in Asia.

BCPG expects the project to be profitable immediately.
Company president Bundit Sapianchai said BCPG signed the agreement with Singapore-based CAIF (CapAsia Asean Infrastructure Fund) III on Friday to acquire an interest in PetroWind Energy Inc, a “major player in the Philippines’ wind energy business”.
BCPG will hold a 40-per-cent interest in the project, located in Nabas, Western Visayas.
Thirty-six of the megawatts are in operation and 14 are under development.
The acquisition will increase BCPG’s global generating capacity to more than 400MW worldwide, which is in line with its mission to invest, develop and operate green power plants globally. 
The project is expected to have a plant load factor of 35-40 per cent, meaning generation at maximum capacity for 8.4 to 9.6 hours per day.
In addition to solar and wind power, the company has been studying various types of renewable energy including geothermal and energy storage systems, mainly in the Asia-Pacific region – not only to expand its business portfolio but to find innovations that will help drive new businesses to create sustainability, it said.

KEJORA OPENS BANGKOK OFFICE

Kejora Ventures, a private venture-capital firm based in Jakarta, yesterday announced the opening of its office in Bangkok, adding to its presence in Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore. 
The firm says the Bangkok office will help it attain its goal of helping entrepreneurs succeed in the technology arena by expanding their access to strategic partners and investors in Southeast Asia. Thailand, the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, is well placed to take advantage of a global digital wave transforming economies and societies. 
The Thai government is supporting the start-up ecosystem with a Bt20-billion venture fund that it announced last year. Half of the amount will go towards technology start-ups.
“We see a lot of potential in the tech start-up scene in Thailand and want to be at the forefront of supporting corporate innovation in the country,” said Sebastian Togelang, founding partner of Kejora Ventures. “Thailand is a natural extension of our vision of setting up a tech community that will work together to share our knowledge.” 
The launch of Kejora Ventures’ Bangkok office was inaugurated by Chatchaval Jiaravanon, a member of the firm’s advisory committee and a director on True Corp’s board, and Togelang, and was attended by more than 100 regional investors. 
The venture-capital firm recently announced that it had raised about one-third of the target fund size of US$80 million (Bt2.77 billion) at the first close of the Kejora Star Capital II Fund, drawing investors such as the Barito Pacific Group, the Charoen Pokphand family and Hubert Burda Media. 
The Kejora Star Capital II Fund has invested in six high-growth start-ups – C88Fintech Group, Qareer Group Asia, Etobee, Investree, Pawoon and MoneyTable. 

WHAUP IPO PRICE SET

WHA Utilities and Power’s Bt229.50-million initial-public -offering price is set in a range of Bt25.25-Bt26.25 per share on expectation for a debut on the Stock Exchange of Thailand early next month.
The subscription period is scheduled for March 22-24 for its existing shareholders and March 22-24 and 27-28 for general investors.
SCB Securities has been appointed as the lead underwriter for WHAUP’s IPO shares, while RHB Securities (Thailand) and Bualuang Securities are the underwriters. 

KRUNGSRI EYES RETAIL GROWTH

Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya and its business units) says it aims to grow by 11 per cent this year in all types of retail finance including auto instalment loans, mortgages, and credit-card and personal loans. 
Krungsri also targets 2.2-per-cent growth in retail deposits and 11.7-per-cent growth in assets under management, aiming to maintain a leading position in the retail segment, strengthen its presence in neighbouring countries, and adopt innovation and banking technology that meet customer needs. 
 

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