The 10-Year Alternative Energy Development Plan
DEDE has prepared the 10-year Alternative Energy Development Plan (2012-2021), aiming to promote alternative energy usage to 25% of energy consumption and reduce dependency on energy import.
The Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency (DEDE) has prepared the Alternative Energy Development Plan: AEDP 2012-2021 to promote usage of alternative energy to 25% within 10 years, replacing fossil fuel such as oil and natural gas and at the same time reducing dependency on energy import. Each year, Thailand imported more than 60% of energy used commercially, including 80% of total domestic oil usage, and the import portion tends to increase as local petroleum failed to catch up with escalating demand. On the other hand, the alternative energy development will also help diversifying fuel procurement risk for power generation purpose.
The promotion of alternative energy development, aiming for 25% usage within 10 years, is a strategic plan that will drive for a variety of appropriate alternative energy that can be categorized as follows:
1. Alternative energy for power generation
1.1 Solar power To promote small power projects that can be installed within household or community, including the Solar PV Rooftop for residential units, community, office buildings, factories, and public buildings.
1.2 Wind power To promote construction of wind turbines for power generation together with other power generation system in remote community and in islands that are not currently connected with the national power system, as well as wind turbines for agricultural purposes, especially in water pumping for household consumption.
1.3 Hydro power To promote hydro power generation in the village level for people that are not connected with the national power system and hydro power generation in the community level that allows local administrations or local communities to partly own the project as well as manage and maintain the projects by themselves.
1.4 Waste To promote power generation from waste in small and medium local administrations as well as small communities such as schools, temples, communities, and other agencies.
1.5 Biomass To promote the establishment of “Distrubuted-Green-Generation-DDG (DGG)”, to be owned and managed by community energy enterprises. To also promote fast-growing plants in unoccupied area, process, and sell as fuel to community energy enterprises for power generation.
1.6 Biogas To promote biogas generation in the household level and develop community biogas network to connect and share among community members. To also promote usage of biogas in the transportation sector, with pricing mechanism that reflects actual costs to encourage production.
2. New types of energy for power generation The DEDE has studied new types of energy for power generation, with potential for commercial development, including;
2.1 Geo Thermal Thailand needs to develop a potential map and relevant technologies in order to make use of geo thermal. However, there are certain obstacles including limitation of energy sources as most of domestic sources do not contain high thermal value while it also need to rely on external technology.
2.2 Tidal and current energy The DEDE has speed up the study of this type of energy to identify sources and technologies that could be applied with domestic sea energy. Initially, potential areas include those under the Sarasin Bridge in Phuket and around Samui-Pa Ngan and Tan islands. The Department will develop pilot projects should it find adequate potential in these areas.
2.3 Hydrogen and energy storage system Thailand needs to study raw material sources for hydrogen production and conduct research and development on production technology, storage, effective production process as well as R&D on technology to apply hydrogen with storage system and demonstrate other forms of energy storage such as Vanadium Redox Flow and Lithium-Ion Battery technologies.
3. Alternative energy in transportation sector (fuel substitution)
3.1 Ethanol (Gasoline substitution) To increase average output of cassava and sugar cane by no less than 5 and 15 tons/rai/year by 2021 and to promote commercial use of other alternative crops such as sweet sorghum.
3.2 Bio diesel (Diesel substitution) To promote total palm planting area to reach 5.5 million rai, with 5.3 million rai of productive area that yield no less than 3.05 million ton/year of crude palm oil by 2021. It plans to run a pilot project for B10 or B20 in truck fleet or fishing boats while imposing 7% of biodiesel addition to diesel (B7).
3.3New type of fuel to replace diesel in the future Currently, seven new types of fuel have been developed and tested including Jatropha Curcus, sea- and white water-weeds, FAEE, ED95, Diesohol, BHD, and BTL.
4. Renewable Heat To promote renewable energy such as biomass, waste, biogas, and solar to produce heat for usage in the industrial sector, replacing fossil fuel.
4.1 Solar To promote the installation of solar heating/cooling system, possibly starting with pilot projects in government buildings, develop solar water heating system in household level with low budget, develop mandatory mechanism such as Building Energy Code requiring large buildings to install solar water heating/cooling system, and promote solar drying system for SME and community enterprises (OTOP).
4.2 Biogas Conducted the Compressed Biogas (CBG) project to complement and support the usage of NGV in the transportation sector.
4.3 Biomass Promoted the usages of Biomass Pallets production system and co-generation system (electricity + thermal), or Biomass Co-Generation.
If the targets are attained, alternative energy could eventually turn into mainstream energy sources and increase the country’s energy security as well as promoting the innovation of new energy technologies to compete in the global market and make Thailand a prototype of green community.