Thailand's largest coal miner buys gas-fueled power plant in US
Thailand's biggest coal mining company Banpu has invested 430 million USD to acquire a 100 percent stake in a large-scale gas-fired power plant in the US, hurrying to move away from its main business, which has a large environmental impact, to a green business.
Bangkok (VNA) - Thailand's biggest coal mining company Banpu hasinvested 430 million USD to acquire a 100 percent stake in a large-scalegas-fired power plant in the US, hurrying to move away from its mainbusiness, which has a large environmental impact, to a green business.
The company acquired the power plant in Texas from Temple Generation Iand signed the contract on August 10. The transaction is expected to be completedby the fourth quarter of 2021.
Banpu also invested 770 million USD in December 2019 to acquire a shalegas operation in Texas. It can provide gas to the power plant that the companybought in Texas at competitive prices.
The investment is part of the company's business plan to gogreener.
Somruedee Chaimongkol, Banpu's chief executive officer, said that thecompany would gradually cut the role of the coal business and instead shiftbusiness resources toward natural gas and renewable energy. The company is aimingto have low-carbon green businesses contribute more than half of overall incomeby 2025.
Banpu's power plant in Texas is a combined cycle gas-fired power plantwith generating capacity of 768 MW and started commercial operation in July2014. With the new investment, the company's total equity-based capacity willtotal 3,300 MW from 34 gas-fired, co-generation and renewable power plants inThailand and abroad./.
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