Billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi is merging his Bangkok-listed Gulf Energy Development with Intouch Holdings, which controls Thailand’s second largest mobile phone operator by subscribers, Advanced Info Service, in a deal that will create a combined entity worth over $20 billion.
Under the plan, the two companies will merge and form a new company with a simpler shareholding structure, Gulf Energy said in a filing with the Stock Exchange of Thailand late Tuesday. Gulf Energy holds a 47.4% stake in Intouch.
Gulf Energy shareholders will receive 1.02974 shares of the merged company for each share held, while shareholders of Intouch will receive 1.69335 shares. The merger is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2025.
“This will help increase efficiency which will enhance flexibility of the business and potential for future business growth,” Gulf said in a statement. “This creates a balanced business portfolio between the revenue and profit arising from the energy and infrastructure business and digital business, which will enhance resiliency and foster sustainable growth.”
Gulf Energy—one of Thailand’s largest private electricity producers—has been diversifying into telecommunications and digital businesses. As part of an overall restructuring, Sarath, Gulf Energy, Intouch Holdings and Singtel Strategic Investments will make a tender offer for a 36.2% stake in Advanced Info Service, a provider of mobile phone, broadband internet and digital services in Thailand, for 216.30 baht each. Advanced Info closed Tuesday at 220 baht.
Singtel Strategic Investments owns 23.3% of Advanced Info Service, while its parent Singapore Telecommunications owns 24.99% of Intouch. Upon completion of the amalgamation, Singapore Telecommunications is set to own 9.1% of the merged entity.
Also under the restructuring plan, Sarath, Gulf Energy, and Intouch Holdings will make a tender offer to buy 58.9% of satellite operator Thaicom for 11 baht per share. Thaicom closed Tuesday at 11.10 baht.
The transactions are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
Gulf Energy, which was founded by Sarath in 2007, has been stepping up investments in the digital infrastructure. The company recently partnered with Alphabet’s Google to build artificial intelligence-powered cloud facilities in Thailand. It also plans to to double its data center capacity to 50 megawatts by March next year. In January, Gulf Binance, a partnership between Gulf Energy and billionaire Chanpeng Zhao’s Binance, started a crypto currency exchange in Thailand.
With a net worth of $9.2 billion, Sarath ranked No. 5 on the Forbes list of Thailand’s 50 Richest published earlier this month.
