Sarath Ratanavadi, Thailand’s richest billionaire, is set to invest up to 140 billion baht (about 4.3 billion U.S. dollars) through Gulf Development to expand data center operations and the essential infrastructure needed to support the growth of AI technology.
According to Bloomberg News, this largest electricity producer in Thailand has announced plans to increase its data center capacity by up to 2,000 megawatts within five years to meet the rapidly growing demand for AI and cloud computing services.
Currently, competition is no longer limited to technology companies developing AI models; it has expanded into the global "AI infrastructure war," where the core of this competition is the "data center" and electric power — the backbone behind every AI operation, search, content creation, and automation system transforming how organizations work.
Over the past three years, Southeast Asian countries have been actively attracting investments from global tech giants, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, following announcements of multi-billion-dollar investments to build data centers and cloud systems to support AI growth.
This phenomenon has made ASEAN one of the fastest-growing battlegrounds for AI infrastructure investment worldwide. Amid this competition, the name “Gulf” has gained prominence after seriously expanding into digital infrastructure services since 2025.
After merging its energy and telecommunications businesses under Gulf Development, Sarath Ratanavadi, whose net worth is about 18.3 billion U.S. dollars according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, has been expanding into new sectors including digital infrastructure, virtual banking, and AI-related services to create new future revenue streams.
Previously, Gulf Development expanded its digital industry role through partnerships with Microsoft and Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) to meet the region’s rapidly increasing computing needs. Earlier this year, the company also signed an agreement with Google to jointly develop a Sovereign Cloud for AI in Thailand, while exploring new business opportunities and investments.
Regarding funding for these projects, Yupapin Wangwiwat, Chief Financial Officer of Gulf Development, said the company will use operating cash flow, bond issuance, and bank loans. Currently, negotiations are underway with banks for loans between 400 and 600 million U.S. dollars, with plans to issue bonds worth about 20 billion baht in September.
Additionally, Gulf Development is considering issuing foreign currency bonds for the first time to diversify funding options for future expansion. Currently, Gulf Development and its partners operate data centers totaling about 200 megawatts.
This move reflects Gulf’s significant transition from a power producer to a provider of infrastructure for the digital economy. The company positions itself at the intersection of “energy” and “digital,” the two most critical resources in the AI era.
Modern data centers require not only data storage but vast amounts of energy, stable power networks, and telecommunications infrastructure capable of supporting high-level processing 24/7. This structural advantage gives energy companies like Gulf a competitive edge over many others and could make them major beneficiaries if Thailand succeeds in becoming a new regional data center hub.
Source of information Bloomberg
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