AMATA

AMATA gears up for rush of land sales — AMATA said hundreds of land sales are expected to be sealed in the second half of this year, mostly in the car industry. Viboon Kromadit, a director and senior VP said each deal will require hundreds of rai of land, with the largest deal at 400 rai. Amata has set a sales target of 3,000 rai this year. If the deals are closed as expected, its sales will rise by at least 10-20% from 2,800 rai last year. (Bangkok Post, 18/05/13)

Comment: amata, hemraj both benefit from te continued expansion of automotive manufacturers here in thailand

BTS

BTS extension fares slashed by five baht — Fares on the On Nut-Bearing skytrain extension route were cut from Bt15 to Bt10 yesterday. Bangkok governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said the fare reduction was aimed at reducing the financial burden on the public and encourage people to use public transport. (Bangkok Post, 18/05/13)

PTTEP

PTTEP mulls dollar bonds — PTTEP is considering selling US dollar-denominated bonds to cash in on the booming Asia-Pacific corporate debt market. PTTEP has hired banks for a possible sale of subordinated notes without a fixed maturity, a source said. (Bangkok Post, 18/05/13)

PTT

PTT seeks partnership for biodiesel — PTT is seeking local partners for joint investment in a Bt15bn biohydrogenated diesel (BHD) plant in Map Ta Phut, with a capacity of 370,000 tonnes per year. Executive VP Nattachart Charuchinda said PTT wants a new partner in the palm oil business in order to secure feedstock. Potential partners could be palm oil cooperatives in the south. (Bangkok Post, 18/05/13)

TRUE

True looks into starting infrastructure fund — True Corporation is keen on setting up an infrastructure fund, says Vorapol Socatiyanurak, secretary-general of the Securities and Exchange Commission. He said True’s financial team has asked for advice on setting up such a fund. (Bangkok Post, 18/05/13)