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| Fig. 1: Coal Burner in Thailand. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
Due to Thailand's fast economic growth in the past decade, energy demand is projected to continue rising rapidly, with a predicted increase of 5% each year according to the Institute of Energy Economic Japan. However, Thailand relies primarily on fossil fuels - such as the burning of coal as seen in Fig. 1 - for energy, accounting for around 76.7% of total energy consumption in 2015, which is a major challenge since fossil fuels are limited in Thailand, making the country highly dependent on imports of these resources. Therefore, Thailand is a major net energy importer, with around 84% of its energy sources being imported from foreign countries, and releases up to 24 metric tons per million baht of greenhouse gases in 2017. [1] This being the case, the Ministry of Energy was assigned to develop strategic plans to ensure security of the country's energy supply through reducing reliance on imports as well as to lower national greenhouse gas emissions. As a result, the Power Development Plan 2010-2030, the Alternative Energy Development Plan 2012-2021, and the Energy Efficiency Development Plan 2011-2030 were devised to combat the two major issues mentioned previously. [2]
Thailand's government assigned the Ministry of Energy to formulate plans to meet national energy goals including energy security, economic growth, and environmental-friendly energy. Specifically, this includes increasing renewable-energy-sources percentage in the country's fuel consumption, minimizing energy imports to reduce costs and becoming less reliant on external energy sources, fuel diversification through introducing nuclear energy by 2035, and development of power system infrastructures to optimize integration of renewable sources of energy. Under plans to promote alternative and renewable energy, the production of bioethanol and biodiesel is predicted to rise significantly in 2021 as well as construction of wind and solar farms. [2] These projects aim to increase Thailand's fuel independence and reduce CO2 emissions from fossil fuels as the country moves to being more sustainable and environmental-conscious. Currently for nuclear energy, the EGAT is in the project planning and site selection phase. It plans a feasibility study to be completed in 2020, project implementation and bidding in 2023, and for the first nuclear power station to be commissioned and ready for operation in 2035.
The construction of nuclear power plants in Thailand was first considered in 1966, when the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) proposed this idea to the government. A year later, the government appointed a nuclear sub-committee to research on the practicality of nuclear plants as well as identify potential sites for them, which were approved by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 1970. However, a source of natural gas was discovered in the Gulf of Thailand in 1977, causing the government to postpone nuclear projects indefinitely. [3] It wasn't until 30 years later that the EGAT reconsidered nuclear power plant construction and had plans devised and approved. The Power Development Plan 2010-2030 to produce 4000-megawatt nuclear plants was deferred once again in 2011 by the National Energy Policy Commission (NEPC), following the Fukushima nuclear accident. [3] This being said, the plan has been modified appropriately and is expected to take effect in 2023.
Thai officials have devised lengthy plans that will take place over the next few decades in order to ensure the nations energy supply security that will be challenged by projected rise in energy demands. These projects will allow for Thailand to be less reliant on energy imports and diversify its fuel consumption. In terms of nuclear energy, there is a high likelihood that the country will see construction of power plants soon as the public becomes better educated and more supportive of such projects.
© Pat Yontrarak. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] S. Traivivatana et al., "Thailand Energy Outlook for the Thailand Integrated Energy Blueprint (TIEB)," Energy Proced. 138, 399 (2017).
[2] B. Shoram et al., "Critical Analysis of Thailand's Past Energy Policies Towards the Development of a New Energy Policy," Energy Effic. 11, 713 (2018).
[3] P. Pongsoi and S. Wongwises, "A Review on Nuclear Power Plant Scenario in Thailand," Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev. 24, 586 (2013).
