Purchase of energy from solar rooftops expected to be deregulated in April

By Thai PBS

 

 

The Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency is expected to propose to the National Energy Policy Committee headed by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha next month a project to buy power generated from solar rooftops of households and commercial buildings.

 

The department chief Mr Praphon Wongtharua said that, in the initial stage, it was estimated that as much as 300 megawatts of electricity generated from solar rooftops would be purchased at a price not exceeding the price of energy sold by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat).

 

The project which is now being worked out between the DAEDE and the energy regulatory committee before it is to be submitted to the energy policy committee chaired by the energy minister and, finally, the project will go to the National Energy Policy Committee for final approval.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/purchase-energy-solar-rooftops-expected-deregulated-april/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2018-03-12

Didn't they try this before ??

Most roof top solar system will most likely still just use the grid for storage, which I guess this proposal now will legalize.

What is the EGAT price anyway, 2.5 baht/kwh?

4 minutes ago, johng said:

Didn't they try this before ??

Possibly, but now that people do not want coal fire plants built in their backyard, the government has to do something. 

8 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

people do not want coal fire plants

I would rather have a coal fired plant than a Nuclear powered one !

 

I hope this time they make it work ( ie cost effective and legal)

after all there is no lack of sunshine in LOS , there should be panels on every rooftop.

Edited March 12, 20188 yr by johng

1 hour ago, johng said:

I would rather have a coal fired plant than a Nuclear powered one !

 

I hope this time they make it work ( ie cost effective and legal)

after all there is no lack of sunshine in LOS , there should be panels on every rooftop.

Storage is needed too to supply the grid during the night. 

 

There are several, off the grid farms in Thailand that manage to have TV and lights.  They are self sustaining and high tech unlike government buildings.  The government talks endlessly what it is to be Thai, but they seem to be far behind real Thais. 

17 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

Storage is needed too to supply the grid during the night.

Yes  THE  biggest stumbling block of all renewable energy....maybe they can use solar electric to pump water uphill during the day  to behind the dams,  release at night hydroelectric   divert the outflow to a capture area for reuse next day instead of letting it all flow downstream.

2 hours ago, johng said:

I hope this time they make it work ( ie cost effective and legal)

after all there is no lack of sunshine in LOS , there should be panels on every rooftop.

I have looked at installing solar panels at various times over the years, up to now I cant see it being a viable alternative due to cost.

Though Thailand has plenty of sun it gets too hot a lot of the time for the panels to produce efficiently which also is a concern.

The big obstacle here is the solar tech prices are artificially high and the equipment is poor quality. The tech available elsewhere is pretty reliable, etc...

Having years of 40 baht bills, due to solar panels, then to have the junta replace the meters on all who have solar, an increase of my bills to 300 a month,

Any additional return is always welcome,

 

1 hour ago, CGW said:

I have looked at installing solar panels at various times over the years, up to now I cant see it being a viable alternative due to cost.

Though Thailand has plenty of sun it gets too hot a lot of the time for the panels to produce efficiently which also is a concern.

You may possibly be right, as I bought a fridge/freezer in the UK that kept breaking down.  The store eventually provided a cash refund as (apparently) the fridge malfunctioned as a result of my kitchen being too cold at night.....

 

Even so, I agree with Lunchbob and johng.

 

Solar panels are ridiculously expensive here, and I've no doubt modern technology can produce cheap, reliable solar panels - able to withstand the hot sun in Thailand.

Edited March 12, 20188 yr by dick dasterdly

10 minutes ago, leeneeds said:

Having years of 40 baht bills, due to solar panels, then to have the junta replace the meters on all who have solar, an increase of my bills to 300 a month,

Any additional return is always welcome,

 

Have I missed something in your post?

Why has your bill increased, is it because the old meter was under-registering, the new meter is over-registering, or something else?

 

this has disaster and corruption ,written allll over it

1 minute ago, mok199 said:

this has disaster and corruption ,written allll over it

Well as long as they spell it correctly, it won't be a problem.

It's not really viable in Thailand, the cost of electricity is far too low and the cost of solar panels etc is far too high!

7 minutes ago, simoh1490 said:

It's not really viable in Thailand, the cost of electricity is far too low and the cost of solar panels etc is far too high!

Which brings us back to the question of why solar panels are so expensive and (apparently) of poor design?

 

I'd add that electricity isn't particularly cheap in Thailand?

Yes  THE  biggest stumbling block of all renewable energy....maybe they can use solar electric to pump water uphill during the day  to behind the dams,  release at night hydroelectric   divert the outflow to a capture area for reuse next day instead of letting it all flow downstream.

There’s similar now using weighted sleds on uphill tracks. Solar for electric to propel them to the top and releases down at night to turn generators.

48 minutes ago, dick dasterdly said:

Solar panels are ridiculously expensive here, and I've no doubt modern technology can produce cheap, reliable solar panels - able to withstand the hot sun in Thailand.

The problem as I understand it is more to do with "physics" rather than the panels not being able to withstand the heat, once they get above a certain temperature the rate they produce "electric" drops off quite dramatically.

32 minutes ago, simoh1490 said:

It's not really viable in Thailand, the cost of electricity is far too low and the cost of solar panels etc is far too high!

I was seriously considering solar panels when I build my house that was completed in 2010. Based on 4 baht per unit (kWh) as saved money, using one's own solar production, it would take me little more than 17 years to bay back the investment, not included interest – for example loss of bond market interest for money invested in solar cells etc. – and maintenance. The life-span of a system, without major maintenance or replacement of inefficient solar panels, would likely be around 20-years.

 

The price of solar cells has gone down a bit since then, and the solar cell panels may also be little more effective now, so perhaps ends will meet with a system saving some electric, but selling at 2.50 baht or less, seem still like too low (I haven't tried to calculate).

 

In my European home country, solar cell installations on private roof-tops exploded a few years ago – even my native home has less sun than Thailand, however much longer days in the summertime – but the economy was based on tax relief for the investment, and overpriced payment per unit (kWh), where all electric users pay an extra tax to compensate the higher costs of so-called "green energy" from sun and wind.

 

Perhaps a few more years, where for example roof-tiles are solar cell panels – SCG investigate in making that in the future – and efficient storage batteries at a reasonable cost, will make a change.

I invested up front when I bought my house and I made it as energy efficient as I could, the result is an electricity bill that averages 800 baht a month and for two months each year, comes in around 1,300 baht. As much as I like the idea of solar I can't ever see me making a case to install it.

8 minutes ago, simoh1490 said:

I invested up front when I bought my house and I made it as energy efficient as I could, the result is an electricity bill that averages 800 baht a month and for two months each year, comes in around 1,300 baht. As much as I like the idea of solar I can't ever see me making a case to install it.

Thanks for posting. Not much diff from my bill and we dont even have curtains. 

4 hours ago, johng said:

I would rather have a coal fired plant than a Nuclear powered one !

Especially one without an Earth wire.

For On Grid installations the return on investment is just under 5 years. I have a 7kw system on my house, PaneIs are Risen brand and the Inverters are Growatt,  can provide the name of the Company that supplied and installed if anybody wanted more info.

They have a set price structure whether Thai or foreigner, which is a nice change 

4 hours ago, AlfGarnett said:

For On Grid installations the return on investment is just under 5 years. I have a 7kw system on my house, PaneIs are Risen brand and the Inverters are Growatt,  can provide the name of the Company that supplied and installed if anybody wanted more info.

They have a set price structure whether Thai or foreigner, which is a nice change 

Thanks for sharing.
The 5-year return on investment is interesting, also how on-grid works. Do the company have a web-page with information and calculation of return on investment..?

4 hours ago, khunPer said:

Thanks for sharing.
The 5-year return on investment is interesting, also how on-grid works. Do the company have a web-page with information and calculation of return on investment..?

I didn't post as not sure of advertising rules.

www.hisolarenergy.net or Facebook as Hi Solar Energy. You can then contact for a quote etc

22 hours ago, johng said:

I would rather have a coal fired plant than a Nuclear powered one !

 

I hope this time they make it work ( ie cost effective and legal)

after all there is no lack of sunshine in LOS , there should be panels on every rooftop.

Excuse me, a mid size coal  plant are emitting about 6 million tonnes of CO2, per year.  Destroy the forests around, a big area. You are in breathing all minutes. So You are in trouble all time.  Nuclear power plant no CO2 emission. You would be in trouble, when it has an accident.

19 hours ago, bluesofa said:

Have I missed something in your post?

Why has your bill increased, is it because the old meter was under-registering, the new meter is over-registering, or something else?

 

The new meters do not go backwards, as the old ones used to go flat out backwards, then at night what ever power you used the meter would go forward but would never reclaim the distance lost, The reading always took place during the day when maximum power was produced by the panels and the reader of the meter could not read properly as the meter was going back so quickly, after being threatened to be cut off from the grid, because the company boss did not understand solar, I managed to get a Thai, professional to talk to the power co, 

the end result was I was charged 40 baht per month, 

I was happy with that, but calculated power produced during the day would have given me a return on my investment and putting power into the grid for the company to use, 

So if in all this I go back to a minimal bill, or if completley fair business outcome on deregulation,  then a small return for my power given,

De-regulation comes after the market has been divided up by the fat-cats: hence the paint cartel; the opticians cartel.

39 minutes ago, leeneeds said:

The new meters do not go backwards, as the old ones used to go flat out backwards, then at night what ever power you used the meter would go forward but would never reclaim the distance lost, The reading always took place during the day when maximum power was produced by the panels and the reader of the meter could not read properly as the meter was going back so quickly, after being threatened to be cut off from the grid, because the company boss did not understand solar, I managed to get a Thai, professional to talk to the power co, 

the end result was I was charged 40 baht per month, 

I was happy with that, but calculated power produced during the day would have given me a return on my investment and putting power into the grid for the company to use, 

So if in all this I go back to a minimal bill, or if completley fair business outcome on deregulation,  then a small return for my power given,

Very impressive you are a net contributor to the grid. What is the size of your solar system (m2)?

What is your average electricity consumption?