Energy Ministry gears up for remote electricity shutdown in peak periods

The DR programme comprises three major measures: critical peak pricing, interruptible load/direct load control, and emergency activation. 
Under the scheme, power utilities will install a wireless shut-off switch on air-conditioners or other electricity-consuming equipment at participating consumers. 
In exchange for enabling the utilities to switch off or increase the air temperature of their A/C for a handful of short intervals during peak-demand periods, participating customers will be entitled to a 50-per-cent reduction in the electricity rate during off-peak periods. Initially, these measures will be applied voluntarily to large electricity consumers who have installed automated meter infrastructure (AMI), which number more than 1,000 nationwide, Twarath said.
He said the DR tariff mechanism would be supportive of the growth of solar energy, since some consumers would find it a worthwhile to install solar panels to feed electricity to their facilities during critical-peak periods when the power rate is doubled to more than Bt9 per kilowatt-hour, from the current peak rate of about Bt4. 
The critical peak period is expected to occur at short intervals between 1 and 3pm during the two hottest months of a year. The DR scheme is part of the smart-grid programme for which the ministry has laid down a master plan to invest Bt200 billion during the next 10 years, beginning with pilot projects in Muang and Mae Sariang districts of Mae Hong Son, Betong in Yala, and Pattaya in Chon Buri province.