Energy Ministry joins hands with Jetro to develop alternatives to fossil fuel

“The ministry and Jetro have been developing a BHD [bio-hydrogenated diesel] as an alternative to fossil fuel as part of Thailand’s power development plan that runs from 2017-2022,” said Kulit Sombatsiri, Ministry of Energy permanent secretary.

“The BHD is a biodiesel with quality at the same level as regular diesel but can significantly reduce the emission of carbon dioxide.

“We also aim to promote the use of electric motorcycles at over 1 million units in big cities such as Bangkok and Chiang Mai, as well as the use of electric vehicles at government agencies nationwide,” he added.

Kulit added that the ultimate goal of working with Jetro was to promote the use of renewable energy at over 30 per cent of total power usage within the next 20 years.

“To achieve this, we will employ AI technology in powering the smart grid to receive renewable energy produced by the private sector into the national power grid,” he said.

“The smart grid will also support the buying of hydroelectricity from Laos and selling it to neighbouring countries in the Asean community.”

Atsushi Taketani, president of Jetro Bangkok, said that Japan has announced a policy to become a low-carbon society in 2050.

“On the road towards that goal, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has set an action plan with focus on establishing cooperation in green initiatives with other countries, and we aim to work with Thailand on several tangible projects in the future,” he added.