BGRIM’s Q1 Profit Surges 101% QoQ, Driving by Sales Volume and Lower Financial Cost

B.Grimm Power Public Company Limited (BGRIM) reported a 101% upsurge in first-quarter normalize net profit, propelled largely by earnings from growing sales volume including the newly-acquired Glow SPP 1 operations.

The leading Thai private power producer recorded 687 million baht in normalized net profit, excluding foreign exchange effects and expenses unrelated to operations, in January-March. Of this, 443 million baht is attributed to owner of the parent.

Revenues leaped 25.8% from the same period last year to 10.25 billion baht, or a 3.3% increase from the last quarter of 2018, as BGRIM began to tap incremental revenue inflow from a host of power projects.

Key to BGRIM’s remarkable first-quarter revenues are contributions from three co-generation projects namely ABPR3, ABPR4 and ABPR5, in the Amata City Industrial Estate in Rayong, as well as seven ground-mounted solar power facilities for government agencies and cooperatives – all successfully brought on stream in 2018.

Lower financial costs involving loan settlements and less scheduled maintenance shutdowns of power plants also contributed to robust first-quarter financial results, according to BGRIM CEO Preeyanart Soontornwata.

BGRIM’s assuming the operation of the 124-MW co-generation facility in WHA Eastern Industrial Estate (Map Ta Phut), Rayong, from Glow SPP1 Co Ltd which was bought by BGRIM in February this year, also enhanced the Company’s first-quarter bottom-line.

However, the price rise in natural gas, a main fuel for BGRIM power plants, has constrained first-quarter profitability.

But there is a trend towards a decline in natural gas price from March onwards with fewer maintenance shutdowns of BGRIM power plants are scheduled as compared to the first-quarter’s levels.

BGRIM’s combined installed generating capacity at the end of the first quarter of 2019 was at 2,200 MW. Development of power plants owned partially by BGRIM has made good progress according to the plan.

The 420-MW Xuan Cau solar photovoltaic project in Vietnam, destined to be the largest of its kind in ASEAN, is due to commence operation in June this year.

Also slated for commercial start-up in June is the Phu Yen TTP solar farm, also in Vietnam, with 257 MW in installed capacity.

BGRIM’s two other schemes, the 15-MW Nam Che hydropower power and the 4.8-MW industrial waste-to-energy facility are scheduled for commence commercial in the second quarter of this year and December, respectively.

These four power projects and the recent SPP1 acquisition will boost BGRIM’s generating capacity in 2019 by 40% from 2018’s level.

BGRIM is actively exploring power investment opportunities in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines and South Korea.

Meanwhile, the cabinet’s approval of the new Power Development Plan (PDP 2018) on April 30 means that small power producer (SPP) licenses expiring between 2017 and 2025 are eligible to build new power plants to replace the existing ones under the 25-year power sale accords with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT).

In relation to this ruling, BGRIM has five SPP projects whose power sale contracts with EGAT are set to expire between 2019 and 2022.

These five SPP plants will be rebuilt with high-efficiency modern technology to ensure that BGRIM will be able to continuously provide high-quality services to industrial customers.

In another development, B.Grimm Power Korea Ltd, a BGRIM subsidiary, and Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in April held a high-level meeting in Seoul to forge an alliance to pursue renewal energy ventures.

The meeting focused on the introduction of the energy storage system (ESS) and the Smart Grid network system for development in the Eastern Aerotropolis and the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) in Thailand.

At the same time, BGRIM executives also held a meeting with Korea Midland Power Co Ltd (KOMIPO) to discuss collaboration in developing wind power and future renewable energy projects in South Korea.