Thailand’s Banpu invests S$75 mn in Singapore’s Sunseap

Thailand-listed energy company Banpu Public Company Limited has invested S$75 million in Singapore’s leading integrated clean energy solutions provider, Sunseap Group.

The additional funding from the Thai utility company, Sunseap’s first strategic investor, will bring the Group’s equity value to S$300million and will be used for solar projects across Asia. The two companies plan to leverage on each other’s networks and domain expertise to grow in the alternative energy market in Asia and beyond.

Among Sunseap’s clients are government agencies, major companies and small and medium enterprises including Apple, Housing Development Board, Singapore American School, Raffles Institution, the United Technologies Group, Jurong Port, ABB and Panasonic.

Outside of Singapore, Sunseap has a pipeline of projects in Cambodia, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Australia.

Founded by Frank Phuan and Lawrence Wu, Sunseap’s other investors include US bank Goldman Sachs and Singapore-based investment holding company TRIREC, as well as high net worth individuals from the region. The company concluded the first close of its third round of funding from private equity investors in May 2017.

Wu, Co-Founder and Director of Sunseap Group, said: “Banpu’s investment in Sunseap is a ringing endorsement of our business model and our ability to execute. The entry of integrated energy companies like Banpu into renewables underscores the momentum achieved by clean energy in recent years, aided by technological advancements, price parity and growing consumer support.

“Sunseap sees significant synergies in the latest partnership as it will allow us to tap Banpu’s deeper resources and wider networks in the region and they, to leverage our expertise and experience in delivering innovative clean energy solutions in a reliable and cost-effective manner.”

Banpu is the second integrated energy company to partner Sunseap which has to-date 350 megawatts of distributed solar contracts around the region. Last month, Sunseap and Shell announced an investment by Shell in Sunseap for joint solar projects in the region. Both Banpu’s and Shell’s moves are part of a global trend of green investments by large oil companies in recent years. The investments reported so far include wind farms, electric storage systems and carbon capture and storage. Another oil major, Total of France has redefined their mission to take advantage of the total electricity value chain, including batteries, solar power and biogas generation.

Keith Lim, Group Financial Controller of Sunseap Group, said: “We are delighted to work with one of the energy leaders in the Asia Pacific who shares the same vision of developing innovative and viable technologies that contribute to the sustainable development of economies and communities.”

Khun Somruedee Chaimongkol, Banpu’s CEO, said: “Banpu is now gearing up to capture a new era in the energy industry by focusing on the Banpu Greener & Smarter strategy. We are committed to operating a business that is environmentally friendly and smartly uses all energy resources. Recently, we have moved further into downstream power-generation business, setting up a subsidiary Banpu Infinergy (BPIN) to operate the total energy solutions by integrating advanced technology.”

Kanokwan Jitchobtham, Banpu Infinergy’s Managing Director, said: “With leveraging Banpu’s expertise from operating solar farm plants in China and Japan, we at BanpuInfinergy are moving forward to become a leading energy solutions provider. The investment into Sunseap is another step of Banpu Infinergy in expanding the business overseas so as to add more value to our business. We can synergise the strengths of both companies to offer optimum solutions and service to our customers.”

Founded in 1983 in Thailand by the Vongkusolkit family and Auapinyakul family, Banpu Public Company Limited has grown into one of the energy leaders in the Asia Pacific region with widespread experience in the domestic and international coal industry as well as coal-fired power generation. The company is also in coal mining, power generation and alternative energy through its investments in Thailand, Indonesia, China, Australia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Singapore, Japan, and USA.

BPIN will initially provide one-stop solar energy solutions including rooftop solar systems, solar street lights and accessories, and is also committed to studying the possibilities for offering service of Energy Management System, Energy Storage System and electric vehicles.

Sunseap is also developing its own solar energy solutions, focusing on demand-side management using technology to ensure smarter and more efficient energy usage. The company is exploring the use of smart control systems and batteries under the Energy Market Authority’s OptiWatt programme.