B.Grimm eyes clean power projects in China and Greece

The Thai energy producer B.Grimm Power Plc is considering investing in renewable energy in China and Greece as it pushes ahead with efforts to more than double its generating capacity by 2030.
The company is looking at projects in the two countries with a combined capacity of “several hundred megawatts”, B.Grimm chief executive officer Harald Link said in an interview. The potential investments were still at the discussion stage, he said, declining to provide further details.
B.Grimm has an ambitious expansion plan to raise its total generating capacity to 10 gigawatts by the end of the decade, from around 4GW now.
The SET-listed unit of Thailand’s oldest conglomerate — which is also involved in property development and healthcare — has been growing its renewable energy business since 2015.
B.Grimm Power already has generating plants in the United States, Italy, Australia and across Asia, and is targeting most of its growth through 2030 from outside of Thailand, said Mr Link, adding that the firm is also expecting to develop more solar and wind farms in South Korea.
“Overseas investments have significant risk with different rules and regulations,” he said. “But we have to accelerate the foreign expansion to meet our aggressive growth plan.”
In Thailand, B.Grimm is planning to triple its imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) next year to around 450,000 tons to feed its domestic power plants, Mr Link said. The company made its first direct LNG purchases this year after getting approval from regulators.
B.Grimm shares have dropped 14% this year on the Stock Exchange of Thailand, with market capitalisation now around 60 billion baht. It reported a 44% slump in net profit in the first half due to falling demand from industrial customers in Thailand.