Energy Ministry to import more power

Energy Ministry to import more power

The Energy Ministry is studying a plan to buy electricity from China, Energy Minister Pongsak Raktapongpaisal said on Sunday.

Mr Pongsak said the plan would boost energy security and economic stability in Thailand.

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The country's electricity consumption now stands at 26,600 megawatts and it is expected to increase to 60,000MW. The country needs to quickly build more coal-fired power plants to produce 70,000MW by the year 2020, he said.

The foreign supply of electricity is mostly from Myanmar but the Thai government is planning to buy more electricity from Laos, increasing it from 7,000MW to 10,000MW, he added.

The minister said the government will restructure liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices by the end of 2013. By July, the price of LPG in the household sector will be adjusted, causing fuel prices to drop.

He said pipelines for transporting oil will also be constructed throughout the country to lower transportation costs by about 60 billion baht per year.

Mr Pongsak said the ministry will hold a meeting next week to discuss plans to raise oil reserves from domestic oil traders from 5% to 6% before October.

Pairin Chuchartthavorn, chief executive officer of energy conglomerate PTT Plc, said Thai people would be able to buy fuel at cheaper prices if the prices move in line with market mechanisms.

Mr Pairin said low energy prices will enable Thailand to become more competitive after the establishment of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) at the end of 2015.

The government must start making some changes now instead of waiting for the AEC's establishment. If energy prices in Thailand are higher than Malaysia's, Thailand would lose an important market, he said.

"People in the country should help save energy by 5% to 10% a day so there'll be sufficient energy in the long run. Even if Thailand has energy for consumption in the next decade, it still might not be enough for our children if we don't have discipline in energy consumption," the PTT CEO said.

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