Bangkok--Sep 17--SET
The Chairwoman of the Capital Market Opportunity Center (CMOC) and the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI), Ms. Sopawadee Lertmanaschai, said that the Thai Rating and Information Services Co., Ltd. (TRIS) has announced that Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Pcl. (RATCH) earned an 8.02 point corporate governance (CG) rating, which falls into the ‘very good’ range. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) will therefore give a 50% discount on RATCH’s annual listing fee for the next two years. RATCH is the 8th listed company to receive this privilege from the SET for earning a CG rating of “good’ or higher. .
“The SET’s policy is to continuously promote good CG among its listed companies. We’ve clearly announced we’d give a 50% discount on the annual listing fees of listed companies that have achieved CG ratings of 7 points or more (out of 10 points). We also provide monetary assistance to reduce the burden of their rating fees as well.
Besides the privileges gained from the SET, RATCH will also receive a discount on its securities offering fee from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), plus other services and facilities from the SEC, the Department of Business Development and the Revenue Department,” the CMOC Chairwoman said.
According to the TRIS report, RATCH earned an 8.02 rating score from the weighted average of the following four criteria: 1) Information Disclosure: 8.91 points, 2) Corporate Governance Culture: 8.24 points, 3) Composition and Roles of the Board of Directors and Management: 7.54 points, and 4) Shareholder’s Rights: 7.70 points.
TRIS reported that RATCH obtained its highest score in the information disclosure criterion, as the company has disclosed its important information accurately, completely and in a timely manner. Its management discussion & analysis (MD&A) report and its disclosure of non-financial information were generally of high standard. The company’s board of directors also clearly announced its good CG policy, which has been in effect since January 2003. It has appointed a working committee on good corporate governance to organize various activities promoting a good CG culture.
The major shareholder of RATCH is the Electivity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), which holds a 45% stake in the company. EGAT, as its major shareholder, plays an important role in RATCH’s board of directors and management. Nevertheless, as 40.24% of RATCH’s shareholders are retail investors, its composition is well balanced. While on the subject of the composition and roles of RATCH’s board of directors and management, it is important to note that of the company’s 13 board members, 8 are representatives of its major shareholder, EGAT, and 4are independent directors. Its board members have shown they are dedicated to their work and participate in the meetings regularly and actively.
In 2003, RATCH emphasized the importance of risk management by establishing an audit committee comprised of three members. It is required that at least one committee member has adequate experience/knowledge specifically in the fields of finance or accounting, so as to make the committee’s financial audit more effective and better in line with the SET’s practices of a good audit committee. On protecting its shareholders’ rights, RATCH provides a mechanism to ensure that shareholders receive all the benefits owed them. This is evident from RATCH’s clear shareholder structure without any cross-holdings.
For more details, investors and the general public can browse www.tris.co.th. For the information on good CG, please browse www.cgthailand.org
For more information, please contact the Corporate Communication Dept.:
Ladawan Kantawong Tel: 0-2229-2036 / Kulvida Jintakawong Tel: 0-2229-2037 / Nattaporn Boonprapa Tel: 0-2229-2049 End.
--InfoQuest (NT)--