Energy policymakers must speed up piloting direct power purchase agreements (PPAs), enabling power companies to directly sell renewable electricity to factories in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) to improve competitiveness with neighbouring countries and lure foreign investment, says the Thai Renewable Energy Association.
Peer-to-peer power trade in the renewables category is still not permitted, but the National Energy Policy Council (NEPC) wants to run a direct PPA pilot project to attract foreign investors, especially those in data centre and cloud service businesses that require a sufficient supply of clean energy for their operations.
In June last year, the NEPC resolved to approve the project at a meeting, but progress has been slow, said Natee Sithiprasasana, a board member of the Thai Renewable Energy Association.
The meeting approved electricity trade not exceeding 2,000 megawatts under direct PPAs.
Last year the association cooperated with state and private agencies -- the EEC Office, the Provincial Electricity Authority, the Association of Private Power Producers, the Clean Energy for People's Foundation and the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) -- to jointly study direct PPAs, aiming to help authorities push ahead with the project.
They suggested the government select the EEC to implement direct PPAs because the area houses a number of factories and is equipped with adequate infrastructure, said Mr Natee.
Spanning parts of Chon Buri, Rayong and Chachoengsao, the EEC hosts 12 targeted S-curve industries, including new-generation cars and smart electronics and is set to be developed into a high-tech industrial hub.
Malaysia and Vietnam are also working on plans to supply renewable power to companies, especially for data centres, electronic parts, digital technology and artificial intelligence.
While the two countries are in the final stages of the plans, Thailand seems to be lagging, he said.
For the long term, the Thai government should reform the power supply, allowing power companies to compete with state electricity agencies in selling power to businesses and households, according to a proposal by the TDRI.
Officials can gradually increase the number of electricity buyers in the free market, starting with large businesses which need clean power to avoid the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, imposed by the EU to deal with carbon-intensive manufacturing.
The free trade can be then expanded to cover small and medium-sized enterprises and households.
