Two state majority-owned utility companies plan to list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand this year.
The move is aimed at raising capital for expansion, senior officials of both firms said yesterday.
The two are Global Power Synergy Co (GPSC), a power-generating firm that is a subsidiary of national oil and gas conglomerate PTT Plc; and Universal Utilities Co (UU), a waterworks manager and a subsidiary of SET-listed Eastern Water Resources Development and Management Plc.
GPSC is expected to launch its initial public offering (IPO) and start trading by May, expecting to raise capital of 8-10 billion baht.
President Noppadol Pinsupa said the company plans to expand electricity-generating capacity to nearly 3,000 megawatts over the next five years from the current 1,300 MW.
Part of the capital raised by the IPO is expected to be allocated to increasing capacity to 1,800 MW by 2019, while the shares that would be floated on the SET would come from increasing registered capital by 25%.
The company has a long-term plan to increase its capacity year by year by expanding investment and merging with and acquiring other power-generating companies ranging from fossil resources to green power plants.
Meanwhile, UU plans to launch an IPO in the second half of the year. It intends to increase registered capital by 35-45%.
Managing director Niphon Bundechanan said UU planned to raise registered capital from 510 million baht by acquiring another 1 billion baht cash from its mother company, Eastern Water, taking registered capital to 1.51 billion.
Some 30-40% of additional capital due to come from Eastern Water would be traded as part of the IPO to raise funds.