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Energy Billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi Expands Data Center Investments Amid Increased Demand
Sarath Ratanavadi, recognized as Thailand’s second-richest individual, is fortifying his ventures into data centers to capitalize on a burgeoning market driven by the uptick in cloud computing and artificial intelligence usage. His enterprise, Gulf Energy Development Pcl, along with its collaborators, has earmarked an additional 10 billion baht ($271 million) to double its investment in a suburban Bangkok data center facility.
This extensive investment plan aims to boost the facility's energy consumption from 25 megawatts to 50 megawatts, with the project's completion slated for March. Gulf Energy’s Chief Financial Officer, Yupapin Wangviwat, disclosed these details to reporters recently.
Strategic Diversification in Technology
Sarath is strategically broadening his business horizons into virtual banking, cryptocurrency trading, and other technological sectors. This move comes as Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy faces surplus electricity generation capacity. The region's demand for data centers is on an upward trajectory, spurred by global tech giants investing heavily in advancing cloud computing and AI services.
“We have set the expansion of the second phase now because we expect a surge in demand for our data center services,” Sarath announced during a press conference in Bangkok. “The increased adoption of AI and cloud computing will significantly amplify the demand for our data center bandwidth.”
Future Revenue Expectations
While Sarath refrained from providing detailed projections, he indicated that technology and other non-power businesses are anticipated to contribute a “significant proportion” of Gulf Energy’s revenue in the foreseeable future. Earlier this week, Gulf Energy and Alphabet Inc. jointly announced a cloud computing partnership in Thailand, highlighting the progressive developments in the sector.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Sarath holds a net worth of $9.1 billion, positioning him as Thailand’s wealthiest individual following property magnate Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi. Despite this, shares of Gulf Energy have dipped by 8.5% this year, against a 7.5% decline in the benchmark SET Index.
