Banpu, which has estimated coal reserves of 655 million tonnes with coal sales of 45.7 million tonnes in 2013, operates in six main geographical areas – Indonesia, Australia, China, Mongolia, Thailand and Laos.
WCA acting CEO Benjamin Sporton said starting 2015 with a growth in membership was “a positive step” for the WCA, as Banpu was a “hugely important” company in Asia and globally – exporting thermal and metallurgical coal to markets across the Asia-Pacific.
“Banpu’s decision to join the WCA strengthens our network across Asia and ensures we provide an informed and influential voice for the global coal industry,” he said.
Banpu will be represented on the WCA Board by its CEO Chanin Vongkusolkit and deputy CEO Somyot Ruchirawat.
Banpu’s enterprise is built around diversified strategic investments in coal, power generation as well as alternative energy in several countries in the region.
Vongkusolkit said that as Banpu aspired to build sustainable value to all of our stakeholders, it aimed to conduct its operations in a “socially, ethically, and environmentally responsible manner with care for sustainability, which goes hand in hand with the vision shared by the World Coal Association – to achieve a sustainable and lower carbon energy in the future”
Sporton said it was vital that the global coal industry worked together to demonstrate the critical role coal plays in securing modern energy for all and building modern infrastructure.
The WCA is the only organisation that works on behalf of the coal industry globally.
