Mitsui Signs off on $1.6bn Thai Gas Power Project

Japan’s Mitsui has decided to go ahead with investing $1.6bn in the construction of a 2.5-GW combined-cycle gas turbine power plant in Thailand’s Rayong province, it announced in a statement on November 18.

The decision comes after Mitsui’s signing of a $1.36bn financing agreement with a group of lenders. The Japan Bank of International Cooperation has pledged to provide $208mn, while remaining funds will come from the Asian Development Bank, Export-Import Bank of Thailand and private banks.

The power plant will be built, owned and operated by Mitsui (30%) and private Thai power company Gulf Energy Development (70%). It is slated to start up in 2023 and supply power to Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand under a 25-year contract. Construction will commence in July 2020, Mitsui said.

The power plant’s gas will mainly be imported in the form of LNG, via a 5mn mt/yr terminal Gulf Energy plans to build with state-run oil and gas group PTT.

“We are pleased to support Thailand in answering its growing needs for electricity, together with Gulf Energy,” Mitsui's executive managing officer Yoshio Kometani said. “Along with our partners JBIC and other Japanese companies, we aim to continue contributing to the development of the country's infrastructure.”

Mitsui and Gulf are already building another 2.5-GW gas-fired plant in Thailand’s Chonburi province, due to go live in March 2021.