Thailand’s richest man, Sarath Ratanavadi, plans to invest about 140 billion baht (US$ 4.3 billion) to add 2,000 megawatts of data center capacity over the next five years, according to reports. Sarath’s company, Gulf Development Pcl, which is also the country’s largest power producer, is currently operating 200MW of combined capacity with its partners.
The firm plans to fund the data center and AI infrastructure expansion through operating cash flow, bond sales and bank borrowings, said chief financial officer Yupapin Wangviwat during a video conference with investors last week.
Yupapin said it is currently in talks to borrow between US$400 million and US$600 million, and plans to issue about 20 billion baht of bonds in September. The Bangkok-based firm is also considering its first foreign-currency debt sale.
“We see AI and cloud computing as major growth opportunities for our company,” Yupapin said. “Our strong footprint and expertise in the power business give us a significant advantage as we expand into these areas.”
Sarath, whose net worth stands at US$18.3 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, has since last year been venturing into new businesses including digital infrastructure, virtual banking and AI-related services.
Gulf Development has partnered Microsoft Corp and Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, to meet rising demand for computing capacity, and has inked a contract this year with Alphabet Inc’s Google to jointly explore business opportunities.