A subsidiary of Keppel Corp has spent about THB8 million ($311,000) to increase its stake in a THB7.5 billion district cooling system (DCS) project in Bangkok, Thailand.
This was done through Keppel DHCS, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Infrastructure. Keppel Infrastructure is in turn, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Corp.
In 2020, a consortium comprising Thai renewable energy company BCPG, Keppel DHCS, and Thai engineering consultancy TEAM Consulting Engineering and Management were awarded a contract by the Property Management of Chulalongkorn University (PMCU) for the DCS project, worth more than THB 7.5 billion ($329 million at the time).
The consortium partners aimed to form a joint venture (JV) to design, build, operate and transfer the core and shell of the DCS plant, as well as design, build, own, operate and transfer the DCS assets.
In addition, Keppel DHCS would lead the operations and maintenance of the DCS plant for 20 years.
Keppel DHCS’ shareholding in the JV was 26%, with the rest being held by BCPG and TEAM.
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On Dec 8, Keppel announced that it increased its stake from 26% to 42% by acquiring BCPG’s 16% stake in the joint venture
Keppel says the sale consideration was arrived on a willing buyer, willing seller basis, and based on the par value of the sale shares.
As of 31 October 2022, the aggregate book value and net tangible asset value of the sale shares were THB7.69 million.
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Nonetheless, Keppel says this transaction is not expected to have any material impact on the net tangible assets or earnings per share of the Keppel Corp for the current financial year.
Shares of Keppel Corp closed on Dec 8 at $7.47, up four cents or 0.54% higher than its previous close.
