Ministry eyes rotten rice as energy source
THE National Rice Policy Committee is soon to consider releasing about 5 million tonnes of deteriorated and rotten rice for alternative energy production to cut stockpiling costs.
Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general of the Commerce Ministry’s Foreign Trade Department, said it would in early January propose to the committee that it consider ways to clear out the stockpiles, particularly rotten rice, which makes up about 5 million of the 8 million tonnes remaining in the government’s stocks.
The Commerce Ministry will discuss with the Energy Ministry the possibility of using some of this stockpiled rice to produce energy. The purchase price might be quite low, but it would cut down on the rice stocks and thereby save warehousing costs, which currently are Bt510 million per month or Bt17 million per day, Duangporn said.
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