Govt mulls alternative fuels for public buses to cut the reliance on imports

While NGV and diesel have remained low-priced, E85 gasohol, BHD, compressed biomethane gas (CBG) and ED95, could also be used as viable fuels for public transport, according to Energy Minister Pongsak Ruktapongpisal.

The Cabinet recently assigned the energy, finance, and transport ministries to jointly seek viable alternative fuels for public buses, especially fuels that can be produced locally, to help cut the country’s heavy reliance on diesel and NGV.

The price of E85 is Bt22.98 per litre, while the price of NGV is Bt15 per kilogram – lower than the real cost, due to the government's subsidy scheme. However, the price of NGV will soon be raised, narrowing the gap in cost with E85. Another problem with NGV is the insufficient number of service stations nationwide.

Diesel accounts for 65 per cent of total fuel use in Thailand, approximately 50 million litres of diesel per day. This has prompted the government to set a target to boost the proportion of locally made biofuel, thus reducing the reliance on imported fuels. It is also hoped that local production will increase the incomes of farmers.

Pongsak said that the government intended to promote ED95 to replace the use of diesel. Many related parties have supported the idea as ED95 can also be locally produced.

Lately the ministry has been consulting the King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thon-|buri (KMUTT) on plans to re-|trofit old public buses with ED95 engines.

energy security

Assistant Professor Yossapong Laoonual of KMUTT’s Faculty Of Engineering, said that the use of ED95 would ensure the security of national power as diesel and NGV were expensive and had to be imported. The use of ED95 would also reduce pollution and could be easily produced in Thailand, he added.

Moreover, if it were being produced for public buses, there would be no need to build ED95 stations nationwide – only at bus terminals. The government should also cut excise on ethanol by 95 per cent to promote ED95’s use and bring its price in line with E85.

Yossapong said the government must also encourage the private sector in the building of ED95-compatible engines and seek tax support on the matter from the Board of Investment. The R&D on converting old diesel buses to use alternative energy should also be promoted, he said.

Another alternative option to ED95 is BHD. PTT is responsible for developing BHD, which is made in part from palm oil. In its initial phase, PTT has adapted the old IRPC refinery to produce 5,000 litres of BHD per day. It will pilot the distribution of BHD at its service stations during the next quarter this year. BHD contains 20 per cent of palm oil, but the price will be slightly higher than that of B5 |diesel by between 50 to 70 satang per litre.

A source at the Energy Ministry said ED95 could not compete |with diesel in terms of production as it costs between Bt30 to Bt35 a litre to refine, compared with between Bt22 and Bt23 per litre for diesel.

The source added that in addition to BHD, another possible alternative for public buses was CBG. The energy ministry has joined with PTT to expand CBG stations in remote areas, especially places far from NGV pipelines.