Thailand PTT forms unit for EV services
Source：Bangkok Post Newspaper
From：Taiwan Trade Center, Bangkok
Update Time：2021/08/18
National oil and gas conglomerate PTT Group continues to strengthen its presence in the electric vehicle (EV) industry by establishing a new subsidiary -- EVME Plus Co -- to operate a range of services from EV rental to charging and maintenance.
The establishment was announced days after its power generation arm, Global Power Synergy Plc (GPSC), opened a battery factory in Rayong, the first semi-solid battery production facility in Southeast Asia, on July 19.
EVME Plus is expected to operate the business through its subsidiary Arun Plus Co, which was previously named On-I On Solutions Co.
Arun Plus was established to support EV business expansion.
EVME Plus has registered capital of 1 billion baht and initial paid-up capital of 340 million baht, according to a PTT report recently sent to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
Auttapol Rerkpiboon, president and chief executive of PTT, expects to provide details of EVME's business plan soon. Battery production is a crucial part of PTT's EV business.
GPSC's 1.1-billion-baht factory, located in Rayong's Map Ta Phut area, has a battery production capacity of 30 megawatt-hours.
The factory produces batteries called "G Cells" to serve EVs such as tuk-tuks, buses and motorcycles used to deliver goods, according to Worawat Pitayasiri, GPSC president and chief executive.
PTT plans to scale the capacity to a gigawatt-hour level in the future. In February, GPSC and PTT Oil Retail Business Plc jointly unveiled "G-Box", a 150 kilowatt-hour battery energy storage system that works in tandem with EV charging outlets at a PTT station in Bangkok's Nong Khaem District.
The collaboration is part of a pilot project to ensure EV power supply stability. In May, PTT signed a memorandum of understanding with Foxconn, a Taiwanese electronics manufacturing giant, to jointly develop a digital platform to facilitate the production and sale of EVs and their key components.
The platform, comprising both hardware and software services, will serve car manufacturers who want to speed up their EV production and sales in Thailand and the ASEAN region.
Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/