Laos: Egco buys stake in plant

Laos: Egco buys stake in plant

SET-listed Electricity Generating Plc (Egco) has signed an agreement to hold
a 25% stake in Nam Theun 1 hydropower plant in Laos, which has already
sealed a long-term contract to sell power to Thai and Laotian state
utilities.

Chanin Chaonirattisai, director and acting president of Egco Group, said the
company has reached a shareholders' agreement to buy a 25% stake in Nam
Theun 1 hydropower project, while Phonesack Group Co Ltd and EDL-Generation
Public Company (EDL-Gen) retain 60% and 15%, respectively.

The venture is named Nam Theun 1 Power Co Ltd (NT1PC) and plans to construct
and operate the 650-megawatt hydropower project located on the Nam Kading
River, in Bolikhamsai province in Laos.

The NT1PC has signed power purchasing agreements (PPAs) with Electricity
Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) and Electricite du Laos (EDL).

The venture will supply 514.3MW to Egat and 130MW to EDL for 27 years,
starting from commercial operation commencing in 2022.

"Such investment follows our strategic direction to expand our overseas
portfolio in countries where the company has a strong presence and meets our
target to grow the renewable portfolio to 30% by year 2026," said Mr Chanin.

With this project, Egco Group's renewable portfolio rises to 1,040MW,
accounting for 23% of the company's total equity contracted capacity. The
project also enhances Thailand's power stability and responds to rising
power demand in Laos, he said.

In related news, Egco's board of directors announced the appointment of
Jakgrich Pibulpairoj as the company's new president. The board approved the
appointment on Sept 22.

Mr Jakgrich will assume the post on Oct 1, 2017, replacing Mr Chanin. Mr
Jakgrich currently serves as deputy governor of business development for
Egat. He has extensive experience in managing and developing power plant
efficiency.

Egco posted a net profit of 6.5 billion baht in the first half this year, up
from 4.6 billion year-on-year.

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1331407/egco-buys-stake-in-plant

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com