Thai Billionaire Vongkusolkit Family’s Banpu Buys Stake In Australian Energy Storage Project

Thai energy company Banpu—controlled by the billionaire Vongkusolkit family—is buying a 50% stake in a A$700 million ($460 million) energy storage project in Australia, as the Bangkok-based coal producer scales up investments in clean energy.

The Wooren energy storage project, located in Latrobe Valley, Victoria, will have a power output of 350 megawatts and a storage capacity of 1,400 megawatt-hours when completed by the second half of 2027. It will be capable of supplying electricity to up to 230,000 households continuously for four hours, enabling it to supplement supply during times of peak demand.

Banpu Energy Australia, which will inject an A$110 million into the project, will build the facility in partnership with EnergyAustralia, which will be the sole off-taker of Wooren’s electricity.

“We believe that BESS (or battery energy storage systems) will play a critical role in supporting clean energy infrastructure,” Sinon Vongkusolkit, CEO of Banpu, said in a statement released on Monday. He added that its investment in green energy would help Banpu achieve its goal of cutting its greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020 and reach net zero target by 2050

Outside its home market of Thailand, the company operates in Australia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Mongolia, Vietnam and the U.S. Besides their stake in Banpu, the Vongkusolkit family also has interests in privately held Mitr Phol Group, one of Asia’s largest sugar producers, and listed property developer Erawan Group, which has over 90 hotels including the Grand Hyatt in Bangkok. With a net worth of $1.3 billion, the family is among the wealthiest in Thailand.