B.Grimm Power Plc (BGRIM) reported strong normalised net profit in the first half of this year, while unveiling plans to strengthen investment partnerships and expand its renewable energy portfolio.
President Harald Link attributed the normalised net profit to the parent company, increasing 2.3% year-on-year for the period, reaching 1.09 billion baht.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation grew by 8%, amounting to 7.55 billion baht.
These results stemmed from a 10.4% increase in electricity sales volume, reaching 7.57 billion gigawatt-hours.
Electricity sales to Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) grew by 14.9%, driven by the commercial operation of three small power producer plants in the first quarter and fourth quarter of 2023, adding a total of 420 megawatts of installed capacity.
Electricity sales to industrial users in Vietnam rose by 8.2%, and steam sales volume increased by 16.4%, fuelled by the expansion of production capacity among existing customers and rising demand.
In the second quarter, BGRIM reported a normalised net profit attributable to the parent company of 579 million baht, marking a 20.9% increase from the previous quarter.
This growth was driven by higher electricity sales to Egat, lower natural gas prices, and an increased share of profit from investments in associates and joint ventures, reflecting the improved performance of three SPP power plants under Univentures BGP Co.
However, when compared to the same period last year, performance declined due to increased financial costs and higher income tax expenses, following the expiration of tax privileges for the three power plants.
The net profit attributable to the parent company, including unrealised foreign exchange losses and non-operating items, was 229 million baht.
In this year's second quarter, BGRIM connected an additional 5.2MW of capacity to the system from new industrial users in Thailand, specifically in the food and beverage industry and the automotive parts industry. This brought the total capacity connected in the first half of 2024 to 11.2MW.
To boost long-term production capacity, BGP Holding (US), an indirect subsidiary of BGRIM, acquired the Malacha hydroelectric power project in northern California in the second quarter, with an installed capacity of 30MW.
Additionally, the company plans to further expand by acquiring and developing renewable energy power plants in the energy market in California and other states across the US.
BGRIM has more than 1GW of projects under construction and development.
In the second half of 2024, the company is set to launch three renewable energy power plant projects: the U-Tapao Solar Power Plant Phase 1, the GIFU Solar Power Plant Project in Japan, and the KOPOS Onshore Wind Power Plant Project in the Republic of Korea.
Mr Link said BGRIM's long-term goal is to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The company aims to increase its production capacity to 10,000MW by 2030, with more than 50% of this capacity coming from renewable energy sources.
The board of directors recently approved an interim dividend payment of 0.18 baht per share for the first-half operating results. The XD date is scheduled for Aug 26, 2024, with the interim dividend payment set for Sept 6, 2024.
Mr Link says BGRIM's long-term goal is to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
