The Gulf PD power plant is a 2.6GW gas-fired combined-cycle power project planned to be developed in Pluak Daeng, Rayong province, Thailand.
The plant will be built and operated by Gulf PD Company, a joint-venture between Thailand’s Gulf Energy Development Public Company (GED, 70%) and Japanese conglomerate Mitsui (30%).
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The project is backed by a long-term power purchase agreement signed in December 2013. Financial closure on the £1.27bn (50bn Thai baht) project was reached in November 2019, while construction works are expected to be started in 2020.
The plant will be developed in two phases, with two generating units to be installed in each phase.
The phase one is scheduled for completion in 2023, while phase two is expected to commence operations in 2024.
Gulf PD power project background
The Gulf PD independent power producer (IPP) project is being developed as part of Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) development plan, which envisions the industrial development of 13,285km² of coastal region spanning Thailand’s three eastern provinces including Chonburi, Rayong, and Chachoengsao.
The greenfield power project was awarded to the GED-Mitsui joint venture through a competitive bidding process in 2013.The project received environmental approval from the Thai authorities in November 2016, while amendments to the original project development plan were approved in July 2019.
Location and site details
The Gulf PD Gulf PD combined-cycle power project will be developed on a 78.7ha-site within the Rojana Rayong 2 industrial park, in Pluak Daeng district of Thailand’s Rayong province.
The site is located at a distance of 146km from the capital city Bangkok by road.
Gulf PD combined-cycle power plant make-up
The Gulf PD power station will consist of four gas-fired combined-cycle units of more than 660MW installed capacity each.
Each of the four units will be equipped with one air-cooled M701JAC gas turbine, one steam turbine, and one heat recovery steam generator.
Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) will supply the gas and steam turbines as well as ancillary equipment for each unit, while the generators will be provided by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation.
The units will run on natural gas as the primary fuel, while diesel will be utilised as the back-up fuel.
The plant is expected to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by approximately 70% compared to a conventional coal-fired power station of the similar capacity.
Gas and water supply
The Gulf PD power plant is estimated to require up to 412 million cubic feet (Mcf) of natural gas a day, which will be supplied by Thailand’s state-owned oil and gas company PTT, through a connection to an existing gas pipeline near the project site.
The plant is also estimated to require up to 59,991m³ of water a day, which will be supplied by the Eastern Water Resources Development and Management (EASTW) that distributes water in seven eastern provinces of Thailand.
Power off-take and transmission
The electricity produced by the Gulf PD power plant will be sold to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) under a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) signed in December 2013.
The contracted maximum capacity under the PPA is 2,500MW, while the contracted minimum capacity is 1,500MW.
EGAT will evacuate electricity from the Gulf PD combined-cycle facility trough a 6.97km-long 500kV transmission line connecting its Pluak Daeng substation.
Financing
Gulf PD secured approximately £1bn (THB41bn) long-term debt from a group of 16 local and international financial institutions in November 2019. Half of the loan amount is denominated in US dollar, while the other half in Thai baht.
The major financers for the project are the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC, $208m or £161m) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB, $180m or £139m).
The other co-financers for the project are the Export-Import Bank of Thailand (EXIM Thailand), Mizuho Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, DZ Bank, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), as well as a group of regional banks in Thailand.
Contractors involved
MHPS, in consortium with the Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction Public Company (STECON) was awarded the turnkey engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the Gulf PD power project in February 2018.
MHPS will be responsible for the supply of key equipment, while STECON will be engaged for civil and mechanical construction works as well as equipment installation.
EGAT was appointed as the owner’s engineer for the Gulf PD project in September 2018.
