Egat to reassess demand, adjust plan

The state agency will also seek a new Bt4-billion loan to support its cash flow.

Sineenat Sittiratanarangsee, deputy governor for accounts and finance, said the move came after the National Economic and Social Development Board revised its forecast for this year's gross domestic product (GDP) to between flat growth and minus 1 per cent, against a previous prediction of 2 per cent growth. This suggests a greater decline in power demand.

Egat will also improve its operating efficiency, with the focus on bringing down funding costs as much as possible.

Soon Egat will seek an additional loan of Bt4 billion in addition to Bt6 billion already procured.

Sineenat said Egat was examining which funding sources had the lowest costs attached to them, including bank loans and bond issues.

Egat's board has already granted approval for Egat to seek funding of Bt50 billion, of which Bt20 billion would be used for cash flow, Bt24 billion for new investment and Bt6 billion for debt refinancing.

Egat has debt of Bt68 billion, of which Bt9 billion comes due this year. The state agency needs cash flow of at least Bt20 billion - half of that to pay for natural gas and half for power purchases.

Governor Sombat Sarntijaree said a survey on the Kingdom's power consumption showed it stood at 10.12 billion units in January, down 13 per cent year on year, and 10.8 billion units last month, down 0.55 per cent year on year.

That means on average, power consumption during the first two months of this year fell 6.78 per cent year on year.

Sombat added that Egat had a sufficient power supply for the hot season, which is when power demand usually increases.