Egat growing forests to cut down on emissions

Growing forests nationwide is one way the Electricity Generation Authority of Thailand (Egat) is reducing carbon dioxide in the environment, Ratanachai Namwong, deputy Egat governor for power plant development, said after visiting a coal-fuelled plant in Germany last week to study green technology.

He said Egat began a forestry project in 1994 that now covers 400,000 rai (64,000 hectares) with 80 million trees. These forests can reduce carbon dioxide by an average of 80 million tonnes a year. 

At present, electricity plants emit an average of 500 kilograms of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour.

“We have tried to reduce the carbon-dioxide emissions from our power plants but don’t have the needed technology,” he said.

In Germany, Egat has been interested in a pilot project to reduce carbon dioxide at Niederaussem Power Station, a lignite-fired plant west of Cologne. The plant is studying the feasibility of reducing emissions by integrating technology, such as using carbon dioxide from the power plant to grow algae while utilising a 150-megawatt scrubbing system that cost about 150 million euros (Bt6 billion). The project has reduced carbon-dioxide emissions from the 500kg/kW-h average to 300kg/kW-h.

However, this is only a pilot project conducted in a small power plant. It will take time to apply it to a large plant.

“If this technology succeeds, we will be interested in using it in our power plants in the future,” Ratanachai said.

He said that besides trying to find technology to make its power plants more friendly to the environment, Egat had also looked for alternative energy sources to coal and gas.

One such pilot project involves the use of Napier grass. This project started three years ago, but so far output from this source is less than 1MW.

The main problem with Napier grass is that it takes time to grow, and its quantity differs in different locations. This project needs more research and development.

“If the project can function on a large scale, it may be proposed to the government that farmers be encouraged to grow Napier grass for use in electricity plants in the future,” he said.

While it conducts R&D for the future, Egat also has the immediate responsibility to build enough power plants to support growth in demand that averages 4 per cent a year.

Based on the estimate that gross domestic product will grow by an average of 4-5 per cent a year, the country will need about 700MW a year more from Egat and private electricity generators.

Including traditionally (coal and gas) and alternatively fuelled (wind, water, biomass and solar) plants, Egat plans to add 4,600MW to the system between next year and 2024. It also has to replace 4,000MW worth of plants scheduled for decommissioning.

Egat also has budgeted Bt2 billion a year to limit its plants’ impact on the environment and on local communities, said Paopong Temsumrit, the company’s director of community projects.

He said Egat was concerned about the quality of life in the communities near its plants. As a result, it has projects in place to support people of all ages, including training programmes.

In Krabi, Egat has a policy to recruit locals holding less than a bachelor’s degree to work in its coal-fired electricity plant. It expects to expand that policy to plants elsewhere in the country.

“We have learned that to gain community support for our plants, we have to provide information and knowledge to these societies,” Paopong said.

The Germans also understand this. The Niederaussem lignite-fired plant and the coal-fired Mainova-HKW West plant have established good relations with their communities by providing information about their technology and also recruiting staff locally.