Strategic Plan for Renewable Energy Development: 8% Target
The aim of this plan is to increase the renewable energy share of commercial primary energy to 8% by 2011. If successful, the plan will deliver a production equivalent 5068 ktoe per year. Solar, wind, biomass, biogas, hydro, biofuels, geothermal and fuel cells are included in the Strategic Plan, as well as energy efficiency.
The plan comprises four main elements:
- energy conservation
- renewable energy utilisation
- human resources development
- public awareness.
The key objectives are:
- to regulate such that 4% of generation capacity must be generated by renewable energy such as solar, wind or biomass
- to devise incentive measures encouraging the purchase of power generated by renewable energy, including the use of tax credits and subsidies
- to support research and development on sectors with high potential for Thailand such as solar, micro-hydropower, wind and biomass
- to encourage community participation and partnerships in renewable energy power plants
- to enforce minimum energy performance standards for electrical appliances and energy efficiency labelling for cars, and to promote co-generation systems in industrial estates and in heating/cooling systems.
The Thai Ministry of Energy released plans in 2004 which called for the 8% target to be met through a combination of ongoing SPP and VSPP programs and a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), in combination with incentive programmes and increased funding for research and development in renewable energy technologies. The intended contribution from renewable energy is 2400 MW, of which 560 MW are already installed. The plan calls for a 400 MW RPS and the remainder to be developed through a variety of programmes including specified electricity tariffs for different renewable energy technologies, tax breaks, direct capital subsidies and research and development.
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