Gulf Energy, Singtel ink pact on data

SET-listed Gulf Energy Development, Thailand’s biggest private power producer by market value, has signed a cooperation deal with Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel), a Singapore-based communication technology firm, to embark on data centre business in Thailand to cash in on this growing segment.

According to global tech research company Gartner, Thailand’s spending on public cloud services is expected to surge 31.7% year-on-year to 26.8 billion baht in 2021 and 28.2% to 34.4 billion baht in 2022.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the cooperation was spelled out in Gulf’s notification statement recently sent to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

The deal will see Gulf and Singtel holding a ratio of 50:50 in investment, Yupapin Wangviwat, executive director and chief financial officer of Gulf, indicated in the statement.

“The company foresees rapid growth in digital infrastructure in Thailand as the economy increasingly becomes driven by innovation and technology, with greater demand for data management and storage from local enterprise as well as from hyperscalers entering the Thai market,” Ms Yupapin said.

Singtel is majority owned by Temasek Holdings, the investment arm of the Singapore government.

She said the cooperation with Singtel will draw on the strength of the two parties to capture the growth potential of this segment.

This data centre will leverage energyefficient technologies and green energy solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support sustainable business, she said.

Ms Yupapin said the data centre project’s value will be added from Gulf’s experience in power business, including renewable energy and infrastructure, and Singtel’s substantial expertise in high quality data centres for a diversified customer base globally.

Gulf and Singtel will explore opportunities in data centre business in Asia and other regions in the future, she said.