Bangkok Dusit Medical plans to open 30-bed hospital in PPenh in September followed by another one with 100-bed

BGH expects slower growth

10% revenue increase projected for 2008

Tuesday March 18, 2008
By NUNTAWUN POLKUAMDEE
Bangkok Post

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services, the country's largest hospital operator, projects revenue growth of 10-15% this year to 22 billion baht.

Revenue growth is projected to fall below the company's initial target of 20% due to fewer international patients as a result of the slowing global economy, said Chatree Duangnet, a BGH director and chief executive of Bangkok Hospital Medical Centre.

But revenue growth this year would outstrip industry growth of 10%, he told investors at the Stock Exchange of Thailand yesterday.

BGH reported 2007 net profits of 1.244 billion baht on revenues of 18.88 billion, down from profits of 1.32 billion on revenues of 15.98 billion the previous year.

Dr Chatree said the company would maintain its investment plans of two billion baht for 2008, with half going to new medical equipment and the rest for international business ventures.

A 30-bed hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia was expected to open in September, followed by a 30-bed unit in Abu Dhabi in the fourth quarter.

A 1.2-billion-baht, 100-bed facility is also under construction in Phnom Penh, as is a 750-million-baht, 50-bed project in Hua Hin. Both are to be completed within 2010.

Dr Chatree said BGH had no plans to acquire any new hospitals, and would maintain its 38.25% stake in Ramkhamhaeng Hospital and 16% in Phayathai Hospital.

A tender offer for Ramkhamhaeng Hospital last month was closed with BGH increasing its stake by just 12%. Independent financial advisers said the tender offer was underpriced relative to Ramkhamhaeng's value.

Dr Chatree said BGH projected net profit margins would increase to 8-9% this year from 6% to 7% in 2007, thanks to funding costs falling by 1-1.5% with the issue of new bonds.

The company plans to refinance 8.5 billion baht worth of debt through the issue of new three- and five-year bonds as well as a long-term loan.

The three billion baht in three-year debentures have a coupon of 4.11%, with another two billion raised from five-year debentures with a coupon of 4.84%. BGH also raised 3.5 billion baht from a 10-year unsecured loan priced at fixed deposit rates plus two percentage points.

Shares of BGH closed yesterday on the SET at 31.5 baht, down 50 satang, in trade worth 18.4 million baht.

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services, the investor of BGH hospital in PPenh, is facing growth challenges

Tuesday April 03, 2007
HOSPITALS BANGKOK DUSIT MEDICAL SERVICES BGH facing growth challenges as economy drags its feet

CHAROEN KITTIKANYA
Bangkok Post

Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BGH), which operates the Bangkok Hospital, Samitivej and BNH hospital brands, says the ongoing economic and political uncertainties, southern unrest and baht appreciation will pose challenges to growth. ''We expect the country's overall health care industry is unlikely to achieve the 30% growth we achieved in 2006,'' said Dr Pongsak Viddayakorn, BGH's president. ''In the first quarter, the industry, measured from the performance of the listed health care providers, grew less than 20%.''

According to Dr Pongsak, the group expects its revenues to grow by about 20% to 25% this year from 16 billion baht in 2006, when the company grew more than 25% from a year earlier.

Earlier, Dr Pongsak had estimated that the opening early this year of a new hospital in Siem Reap, Cambodia, the company's first investment outside Thailand, should help BGH's revenue to rise 30% this year.

BGH has also invested 500 million baht in another hospital in Phnom Penh due to open over the next two years.

According to Dr Pongsak, BGH also expects to enter overseas joint ventures in the hospital business in the Middle East over the next two years.

BGH, which specialises in heart and cancer treatment, is Thailand's biggest hospital company by market capitalisation at 38.7 billion baht, ahead of Bumrungrad Hospital and Bangkok Chain Hospital.

BGH welcomed half of the one million foreigners who came to Thailand for treatment last year. It plans to increase the proportion of foreign patients to 35% from 30% in 2006, Dr Pongsak said.

As part of a strategy to stimulate local business, the group yesterday introduced the Chivawattana MyHealth Membership Programme, which entitles cardholders to health-care benefits through the 14 Bangkok Hospital branches nationwide. Services of BNH Hospital and Samitivej would be included at a later date, company executives said.

The Chivawattana MyHealth Membership Programme offers outpatients and in-patients benefits ranging from medical check-ups and specialised treatments to diagnostic services utilising advanced medical technology, such as the 64-slice CT scan for examining the heart, and the PET/PC machine for early cancer detection. Additional features include discounts on dental exams, dermatological treatments, lasik procedures, and others.

The programme is divided into three membership cards: Perfect Diamond, Prime Platinum, and Junior (for children), all of which provide a three-year membership period.

The Perfect Diamond programme, for instance, costs 30,000 baht for a three-year membership, but the cardholders will be eligible for benefits worth up to 168,500 baht, excluding other discounts, according to Assoc Prof Ajjima Srethaphutr, director of the Chivawattana MyHealth Membership Programme.