TPIPP to list, plans 3 new generating plants

TPIPP will issue up to 2.5 billion new ordinary shares via an initial public offering, with the IPO price due to be announced early next month, Prachai Leophairatana, chief executive officer of TPIPL, said yesterday. The number of newly issued shares will not exceed 29.8 per cent of the enlarged paid-up capital of Bt8.4 billion.
Some 2.375 billion shares will be offered to the public, and another 125 million will be sold to TPIPL shareholders under pre-emptive subscription rights.
Prachai said the bulk of the funds raised from the IPO would be used to repay debt to TPIPL, which has financed debt to the tune of Bt4 billion at the subsidiary company, while the remainder would finance three new power-plant projects requiring total investment of around Bt12 billion to Bt14 billion.
After repaying the debt, the company’s debt-to-equity ratio will be zero, from 0.55 currently.
The three planned facilities are a 70-megawatt power plant using refuse-derived fuel, plus two coal-fired power plants – one generating 150MW of electricity and the other producing 70MW.
The three plants will increase TPIPP’s commercial operational capacity to 440MW, as its four existing plants generate 150MW combined, said Pakorn Leophairatana, president of TPIPP. The first 70MW plant is expected to be completed and ready for commercial operation in the first quarter of next year.
Once all three new plants are operational, TPIPP will generate 260TW for TPIPL’s cement plants in Saraburi province and the remaining 180MW will be supplied to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, Pakorn said.
CIMB Thai Bank, Maybank Kim Eng Secirities (Thailand) and Tisco Bank are financial advisers to TPIPP for the listing of its subsidiary.
Prachai said TPIPL was currently also interested in investing in solar farms and wind energy in the neighbouring markets of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, with details expected to be known by the end of next year.