Piyasvasti Amranand, a former energy minister and former president of Thai Airways International Plc, was named chairman of energy giant PTT Plc yesterday by the junta despite public controversy over his plans for further divestment of the national oil and gas conglomerate's businesses.
Piyasvasti: Policies already under fire
Mr Piyasvasti, former energy permanent secretary Pornchai Rujiprapha and former deputy energy permanent secretary Karujit Nakornthap were named PTT board members on June 27.
Those appointments sparked protests from energy advocacy groups demanding their resignation, especially Mr Piyasvasti, whom they accuse of not protecting the public interest when he served as energy minister.
The three embattled board members have stayed on, while deputy junta chief ACM Prajin Juntong, who also sits on the PTT board, said Mr Piyasvasti's experience in the energy sector made him suitable for the job despite opposition to his stance against energy price subsidies.
Mr Piyasvasti succeeds Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, who resigned as board chairman three weeks ago amid moves by the National Council for Peace and Order to revamp state enterprise boards.
Areepong Bhoocha-Oom, the new energy permanent secretary, and Deputy Attorney-General Trakul Winitnaiyapak were also named new PTT board members. Eight of the 15 total board members resigned earlier including former energy permanent secretary Suthep Liumsirijareon.
Meanwhile, Mr Areepong yesterday said the ministry planned to promote waste-to-energy schemes, as several thousand garbage sites nationwide could be used for renewable energy.
Thailand has attempted to produce electricity from landfill waste, but the projects have been stalled by local infighting and political intervention.
The Pollution Control Department reported Thailand had more than 4,000 landfills. Each day, community waste amounts to nearly 40,000 tonnes.
Songkhla’s Hat Yai district and Phuket province have the only two landfills close to generating power from waste.
Mr Areepong said the Energy Ministry would work closely with the Agriculture Ministry to set up zones for energy crop plantation away from food plantation.
As part of the junta's emphasis on energy, the Finance Ministry is expected to introduce soft loans for small and medium-sized enterprises wanting to replace existing machinery with more energy-efficient devices.