The company says it expects this method to generate decent returns and help ensure strong and sustainable growth.
BCPG, a subsidiary of diversified oil refiner Bangchak Petroleum (BCP), has expanded to Japan through its acquisition of SunEdison’s entire solar-power business in that country for nearly US$80 million (Bt2.76 billion). It intends to use the newly acquired subsidiary to expand further in Japan and other countries.
This month, the company raised Bt5.9 billion through an initial public offering of 590 million newly issued shares at the IPO price of Bt10 per share to a specific group of BCP shareholders and to public and institutional investors and the company’s patronage.
BCPG currently owns domestic and overseas solar power plants with an aggregate contracted capacity of 324 megawatts. The solar plants in Thailand have an aggregate contracted capacity of 130MW, consisting of projects that have begun commercial operation (118MW) and those in the development phase that are expected to begin commercial operation by this year-end (12MW).
It also has solar plants in Japan with an aggregate contracted capacity of 194MW consisting of projects that have begun commercial operation (20MW) and those in the development phase (174MW).
Bundit Sapianchai, president of BCPG, said it was now ready for the first trading day on the SET under the ticker symbol “BCPG”, and expressed confidence that the stock would receive sound feedback from investors,
BCPG will use the funds raised from IPO to finance expansion of its renewable-power business both domestically and internationally. The expansion projects will involve various categories of power plants, including solar, geothermal, wind, biogas, biomass and waste-to-energy, which it says employ advanced eco-friendly technologies, and are expected to increase the company’s aggregate installed capacity to 1,000MW by 2020.
“Our investment targets are not limited to those in North Asia and Southeast Asia. We also explore the possibility of investing our capital in other regions. We will base our decisions to invest on the type of fuel [suitable for each respective country] and on expected returns on investment,” Bundit said.