Bumrungrad Hospital shifts focus to campus renovation

It is projected to increase in-patient beds to 40 in 2019.

Bumrungrad Hospital is shifting its focus to BI Tower and Annex projects, as well as the renovation of an existing campus that could increase inpatient beds by 40 in 2019, according to Maybank Kim Eng.

"We believe this can support demand growth in the next three years. However, the Soi1 and Petchburi projects will be postponed to 2021. We agree with management as BI Tower and Annex offer higher returns and require less investment than the Soi1 and Petchburi projects. Some parts of Soi1 and Petchburi are office buildings and parking lots with low disease intensity and complexity.," it said in a report.

Here's more from Maybank Kim Eng:

We continue to like BH’s long-term growth, underpinned by the penetration of new markets, co-operation with local hospitals and its revised expansion plan.

Before the new CEO joined BH in Sep16, management had already planned to penetrate the Indochina market to offset the slowdown in the UAE and Mongolia markets.

The new CEO is focusing on Kuwait and Saudi Arabia as these have limited healthcare resources and infrastructure. We believe BH’s management strength and experience give some assurance regarding a volume growth recovery in 2017.

Besides relying on international patient and medical tourism, BH is strengthening its cooperation with 36 local hospitals. Higher patient volume and complexity are the key benefits from this co-operation. Thus, new markets and a strong domestic network could ensure long-term volume growth potential.