SET-listed Banpu Plc has announced a five-year restructuring plan to emphasise greener energy resources in line with global concern for the environment.
The company already set up Banpu Next Co as the flagship business in the clean energy portfolio for renewable resources, energy technologies, smart city solutions, electric vehicles (EVs), energy storage systems and energy solution services.
Banpu chief executive Somruedee Chaimongkol said Banpu Next will bring together existing subsidiaries Banpu Infinergy Co (BPIN) and Banpu Power Plc (BPP) in an amalgamated company.
BPIN will shut down soon and management will merge with the new company.
"Banpu Next Co is expected to complete its establishment in February 2020 and has two shareholders, Banpu and BPP with a 50% stake each," Mrs Somruedee said.
She said the clean energy business has set a goal over the next five years to increase its ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) to 50% of the group's total from 25% now.
While Banpu's core ebitda of coal mining and trading stands at 70% now, the goal is to reduce the figure to below 50% in the next five years.
Mrs Somruedee said Banpu Next has a power generation target for 2025 from solar rooftops of 500 megawatts, up from 98MW now. Solar farms will reach 1,100MW, up from 300MW, and energy storage systems will have power generation of 3 gigawatt-hours, up from 1Gwh now.
Banpu plans to sell 34,000 EVs in the next five years, up from 100 units in 2019.
Smart cities are planned to develop nine projects by 2025, up from four projects now. Peer-to-peer power trade is set to reach 300Gwh in the next five years.
In 2019, Banpu aims to maintain sales volume of coal at 47 million tonnes, unchanged from last year, while expanding in the renewable energy and gas business.
Banpu announced in early 2019 that it would earmark US$100 million for gas, renewable energy and energy-related technologies such as the micro grid for solar rooftops.
"Banpu wants to be a leader for integrated clean energy in Asia-Pacific, upgrading from a traditional coal miner and power producer," Mrs Somruedee said. "The global energy market will come in the form of 3D (decentralisation, decarbonisation, digitalisation), so Banpu needs to transform itself before actual disruption."
She said the greener energy will bring Banpu many advantages to help overcome rivals.
BPIN made its first acquisition in September 2017, buying a 25.7% stake in Singapore-based Sunseap Group through a subsidiary, BPIN Investment.
Sunseap is a clean energy solutions provider, owning 96.5MW of energy storage. BPIN spent $55.7 million on the deal.
"In Sunseap, BPIN plans to increase energy storage capacity to 150MW by 2020," Mrs Somruedee said.
In March 2018, BPIN completed a second deal by purchasing a 44.84% stake in New Resources Technology (NRT), a Singaporean firm worth $33.2 million.
NRT also operates an energy storage system and runs lithium-ion battery manufacturing.
In February 2019, BPIN acquired a 21.5% stake in FOMM Corporation, a Japanese developer of compact EVs, and in early March it acquired 23% of Muvmi, a mobile app for electric tuk-tuks serving as shuttle transport to mass transit in Bangkok.