Future of Alternative Energy in Thailand - Implementing Environmental and Resource Management - page 91

10 Future of Alternative Energy in Thailand
Angkarn Wongdeethai
Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Department, National Sci-
ence and Technology Development Agency, Thailand
10.1 Introduction
The objective of this paper is to identify the major opportunities and barriers of al-
ternative energy production activities in Thailand, working towards a sustainable
future. The paper analyses the historic and current energy consumption patterns
and identifies the major energy intensive activities in each sector. Thailand's re-
cent energy strategies, policies and oil prices have been studied and discussed
based on the potential of alternative energy production and technology. The paper
describes the key government programs and policies relating to the promotion of
alternative energies and presents their major successes and failures. Thailand's av-
erage energy consumption grew at a rate of 5.5 percent per year from 1999 to
2006 and the domestic energy production cannot accommodate the increasing de-
mand of the country (EPPO 2008a). Thailand's energy production depends largely
on imported fossil fuel which represents a considerable financial cost.
The world depends largely on conventional fossil fuel resources and will con-
tinue to do so for several decades before the coming era of oil depletion. Before
this critical point is reached and because of concerns about rising oil prices Thai-
land is seeking alternative energies and promising technologies. At the moment,
conventional fossil fuels are cheaper than several alternative energies. All sizes of
industries as well as businesses which have already installed or switched to an in-
creased consumption ratio of renewable energy may have to reconsider their cur-
rent situation. It is hard to tell how long the oil prices will remain stabile and how
long fossil fuel emissions will continue to adversely impact the environment, e.g.,
CO 2 emissions. First, people tend to consume energy more because it is inexpen-
sive. Second, the renewable energy sources are relatively less cost-effective; and
their relatively smaller profit margins have prompted potential big commercial
dealers of energy to tighten their budgets for sustainable energy programs. Third,
the Governments confronting financial and economic crises will tend to limit their
expenditures, especially on research and incentive packages. Moreover, the rising
cost of capital is making it harder for both consumer and suppliers of alternative
energy equipment and services to finance new projects. Funding from banks in
many countries has dried up as firms move to conserve capital. However, the gov-
ernment of Thailand continues to subsidize long term alternative energy programs.