ACE keen to list on SET, reach 1GW

Absolute Clean Energy Plc (ACE) has an ambitious plan to increase power generation from clean energy to 1 gigawatt in five years from 211 megawatts now after raising funds from an initial public offering (IPO) on the bourse.

ACE wants to list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), with Trinity Securities Co its financial adviser and underwriter for the IPO.

ACE plans to float 1.82 billion shares, representing 16.6% of total registered capital at 5.49 billion baht. ACE's share par value is set at 0.50 baht per share.

The filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission was completed last Friday.

Chairman Jiratha Songmetta said ACE will start roadshow activities to attract potential investors.

ACE, owned by the Songmetta family, produces power from renewable resources: biomass, waste-to-energy and solar. It also has one gas-fired power plant.

The company diversified in 2009 from wood chip processing and export, its business for more than three decades. In 2018, ACE exported 3 million tonnes of wood chips for power generation.

It operates 13 clean power projects across the country, nine from biomass.

Mrs Jiratha said partial funds from the IPO would finance nine future projects in the pipeline.

"ACE is keen on management of higher moisture of 65% for agricultural waste, making it suitable enough for biomass power generation," she said. "Other power companies have an average moisture rate of 30-40%, so ACE is confident we can operate with a higher utilisation rate."

Mrs Jiratha said the annual shutdown of power plants for maintenance averages 3-4 days, shorter than its peers at 12 days.

ACE projects Thai biomass projects using farm waste to generate 10,000MW. Biomass only contributes 2,300 MW on the state grid now.