Skip to content
  • All News
  • Regional News
    • Southeast Asia News
    • South Asia News
    • Northeast Asia News
    • Australasia News
  •   Awards
  • Events
    • All Events
    • Southeast Asia Events
    • South Asia Events
    • Middle East Events
    • Northeast Asia Events
    • Australasia Events
    • Past Events
  • CenterStage
    • Audios
    • Videos
  • Magazines
  • Our Story
  • Contact Us
Menu
  • All News
  • Regional News
    • Southeast Asia News
    • South Asia News
    • Northeast Asia News
    • Australasia News
  •   Awards
  • Events
    • All Events
    • Southeast Asia Events
    • South Asia Events
    • Middle East Events
    • Northeast Asia Events
    • Australasia Events
    • Past Events
  • CenterStage
    • Audios
    • Videos
  • Magazines
  • Our Story
  • Contact Us
Member Login
Login
Southeast Asia News

Thailand’s Gulf Energy Development enters telco sector by acquiring 42.2% stake in InTouch

Thailand’s largest private power producer Gulf Energy Development has entered the country’s telco sector.

In a tender offer that closed on Wednesday, Gulf Energy secured subscriptions for 747 million shares, or 23.3 per cent of all issued shares in InTouch, which itself is a major shareholder of Thailand’s largest mobile telco giant.

When the deal is completed on August 11, Gulf Energy will have a 42.2 per cent stake in InTouch, up from its previous 18.9 per cent share. InTouch has a significant presence in Thailand’s telecom industry, as it has a 40 per cent stake in leading mobile operator Advanced Info Service (AIS). It also holds 41 per cent of satellite operator Thaicom.

Singapore’s Singtel holds a 21 per cent stake in InTouch.

Gulf Energy is owned by billionaire Sarath Ratnavadi, who has business interests ranging from power to motorways and an LNG terminal in Rayong Province.

According to Forbes, Ratnavadi owned assets with a net worth of $8.8 billion as of July, making him Thailand’s fifth-richest man.

In April, the company said it is ready to apply for a short-term bridge loan of 150 billion baht from local and international financial institutions to fund the share purchase of InTouch. Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra originally founded InTouch as Shin Corp. The telco holding company was sold to Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings in 2006. Thai regulations required that Gulf Energy also make an offer to acquire AIS, as its stake in the company was expected to surpass the 25 per cent threshold as a result of the InTouch deal.

Thailand’s cloud and data center market is on the verge of greatness; the country holds great digital potential as the second-largest economy in ASEAN.

In 2021, the Thai government has committed to expanding its digital infrastructure and ICT capacities nationwide, with the hopes of establishing it as a digital hub that can compete with the likes of neighbouring countries Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.

As more of Thailand’s population goes online, broadband quality and energy sustainability become increasingly challenging. The country’s strategic position geographically has piqued the interest of many tech giants already operating throughout Southeast Asia, who expect that investment in Thailand’s cloud and data centre industries will deliver favourable ROI’s in the years to come.

Identifying 5G networks as one of its core growth pillars, Thailand’s telecom operator True Corporation is set to spend 40 – 60 billion baht (about $1,2 – $1,9 billion) in the next three to five years.

Read: https://w.media/thailands-true-corporation-earmarks-2bn-to-develop-5g-network/

Publish on W.Media
  • August 10, 2021
Author Info - W.Media
Putra Kurniawan
Putra Kurniawan
Share This Article
PrevPrevious PostAcoustic to launch a local Cloud-based Data Centre in Australia
Next PostMacquarie to acquire 40% stake in Open Fiber for $2.51 billionNext
Other Popular Posts
5%
South Asia News
July 19, 2023

India’s mobile industry crosses milestone of 100 million 5G smartphone sales

Image credit: Insydo
World News
July 2, 2021

Etisalat announces plans on accelerating OpenRAN

Google
World News
April 14, 2022

Google to Invest a Mammoth $9.5 billion in data centres in the US

DCI
Australasia News
January 26, 2022

DCI to construct 2nd Data Centre in NZ

Image Credit: The Walton Centre
South Asia News
July 28, 2022

TCS Partners with The Walton Center NHS Foundation Trust to Develop Digital Solutions for Patients

nz
Australasia News
December 6, 2022

T4 Group Partners with NTT to Provide its Data Center Infrastructure in New Zealand

W.Media is a Technology Publisher & Community Hub.

We serve the cloud/IT, data centers and network infrastructure professionals through media solutions and business events.

Follow us on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/w-media-company

Receive the latest news.

We'll keep you in the loop.

Great! now press

Our Story

Contact Us

Advertise on W. Media Platforms

Terms & Conditions

Privacy Policy

© 2023 W.Media. All Rights Reserved