PTT to kick-start investment
SET-listed
PTT Plc, the national oil and gas conglomerate, is accelerating its planned projects over the next five years to help jump-start investment and boost the economy.
The objective is to bring forward projects in its five-year plan and increase investment in line with government policy, said president and chief executive Tevin Vongvanich.
“I have just concluded the company’s board meeting, and the board has approved the decision to start some projects earlier than previously planned in order to help support the economy,” said Mr Tevin.
The expedited projects are due to get underway by next year.
Mr Tevin said all projects which involve the purchase and installation of new machines as well as maintenance on petrochemical facilities need to be started immediately.
The company also wants to speed up a project to increase the refining efficiency of its petrochemical refinery business, IRPC Plc.
Mr Tevin said plans to revamp IRPC entailed refining a greater range of petrochemical products to simultaneously cut production costs while increasing added value.
He said PTT will also bring forward plans to increase the refining capacity of its oil refining subsidiary, Thai Oil Plc, the largest refiner in Thailand.
The company aims to expand its capacity by another 100,000 barrels to 400,000 barrels per day. It further plans to add value to its bunker oil by converting it into petrol.
Previously, the project was expected to be slightly delayed from the end of this year to some time in the second half of 2017.
Mr Tevin did not say exactly how fast the project would be sped up.
For another PTT petrochemical subsidiary, PTTGC, Mr Tevin said he would bring forward 2-3 projects to invest in producing more naphtha to be used as petrochemical feedstock, as opposed to using other commodity-grade feedstock.
Regarding the investment budgets for PTT and its subsidiaries for 2015-2020, the capital expenditure (capex) for PTT Plc alone was set at around 300 billion baht.
Capex for PTT plus its subsidiaries which also invest in state enterprises was set at 900 billion baht, while capex for PTT and all its subsidiaries was set at 1.2 trillion, he said.
He said these those sums will be revised again next year if needed.
Mr Tevin said PTT had continued to maintain its investment budget for research and development at around 3% of its net profit each year.
In 2015, the company posted a net profit of around 20 billion baht, falling substantially from the previous year due to collapsing oil prices, which have sharply cut into the company’s revenue.
Meanwhile, PTT and its exploration and production subsidiary, PTTEP Plc, will host the 10th International Petroleum Technology Conference 2016 on Nov 14-16 at Centara Grand.