Belgium's Tractebel eyes Korea, China

Belgium's Tractebel eyes Korea, China

BANGKOK: Belgium's Tractebel, part of French utility Suez Lyonnais, said on Monday it had submitted a bid for Enron Corp's stake in a South Korean gas distributor and was looking to enter China's energy market.

Tractebel declined to say how much it had bid for Enron's 50 percent stake in SK-Enron, which was valued at US$300 million in 1998 when the now-bankrupt U.S. firm formed the joint venture with South Korea's SK Corp.

Tractebel has invested around $1.1 billion in power plants in Singapore, South Korea and Thailand since entering Asian markets in 1995. The company said on Monday it is focussing on countries, including South Korea, with political stability, clear regulation and contract law and good economic prospects.

"Korea will be deregulating in coming years, and that should allow us to see other opportunities to grow," Tractebel Asia's President Marc Josz told Reuters by phone in Bangkok. -- Reuters