Thailand too deep in coal rut to see the light of solar
Scotland now produces 99 per cent of its electricity from alternative clean energy – mostly wind, but a good measure of solar also.
England is getting close to producing a quarter of its electricity from solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, most of them owned by homeowners.
What is Thailand doing? The last I heard, its largest electricity seller is planning to build a lignite/coal burning plant in Krabi province, on the Andaman Sea.
Why not solar for Thailand? I think part of the answer is that the state corporation which provides electricity for most of Thailand doesn’t want to lose revenue to pesky alternative energy solutions.
Thailand should not invest in wind turbines, for the simple reason there’s not enough steady wind to make it feasible. However, Thailand should step up its deployment of solar PV. Another type of solar (the type you use to dry clothes outside) is called “passive solar”. It’s actually more cost-effective for producing electricity than PV panels, but Thai engineers apparently aren’t aware of that yet. Or if they are, the general public hasn’t heard any mention of passive solar proposals from Thai engineers for generating electricity.
It is important to note that in several countries, including India, engineers have brought the cost of solar-generated electricity down below that of coal-generated electricity.
Ken Albertsen
Chiang Rai
