Thai Banpu plans $466 mln investment, wary on outlook

Reuters, By Pisit Changplayngam, Wed Nov 11, 2009 5:41am EST

BANGKOK, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Banpu BANP.BK, Thailand's largest coal miner, said on Wednesday it planned to invest $466 million over the next six years, but warned lower average selling prices in 2010 would mean just single-digit revenue growth.

"Most of our investment money for existing projects will be spent on coal rather than the power business," Chief Executive Chanin Vongkusolkit told reporters, referring to spending plans starting next year.

Of the total investments, $189 million would be for coal mining projects in Indonesia, $22 million for its coal business in China and the rest for its 40 percent owned Hongsa lignite power plant project in Laos, Chanin said.

Under the plan, the company aimed for total coal production in China and Indonesia to rise to 33.5 million tonnes, he said, without giving a comparison.

Banpu is also the fourth-biggest coal miner in Indonesia with five coal mines, and has three in China. It is now on the lookout for new assets in the region, mainly in Indonesia and Australia.

"We are quite capable of getting help from financial institutions -- with cash flow and assets worth about 50 billion baht and debt to equity of 0.24, say -- if we were to win any bidding or acquire new businesses," he added.

Banpu shares closed up more than 3 percent on Wednesday at their highest in nearly a month at 462 baht, while the broad market .SETI was up 1.4 percent.

On Tuesday it reported a higher-than-expected 22 percent rise in third-quarter net earnings after the market closed, helped by higher coal sales from Indonesian mines and gains from coal swaps.

LOWER COAL PRICES

Chanin said the company's 2010 revenue would grow by a single-digit percentage from this year's expected 57 billion baht ($1.71 billion) as it expected average coal prices in 2010 to fall below the $72 a tonne targeted this year.

Sixteen analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S forecast revenue of 54.8 billion baht, down 1.6 percent from an expected 55.7 billion baht this year.

"Sales in 2010 will still grow in volume, but having said that, average sale prices would be lower as we'll be expecting more low-quality coal, which would weigh on sales growth," he added.

At the end of September, Banpu's coal reserves stood at 581.4 million tonnes, down 1.1 percent from the previous quarter.

Its average coal selling price in the third quarter was $69.49 per tonne, down 17 percent from a year earlier.

Chanin said he expected fourth-quarter sales of about 16 billion baht, but Banpu would see "less net profit" compared to its 3.81 billion baht ($114.4 million) in the third quarter due to a maintenance shutdown at its 50 percent owned BLCP plant, along with a fall in average selling prices. ($1= 33.30 Baht) (Writing by Ploy Ten Kate; Editing by Alan Raybould)