Rift over Thai energy reform

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ENERGY
Rift over energy reform
The Nation

One group favours liberalisation while another faction backs nationalisation

BANGKOK: -- Energy reform, an important task that has been mired in political conflict for a long time, is still causing rifts as two pro-junta groups remain deeply divided in their approaches to tackling the matter.

On the one hand, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), in opting for a member of the old establishment - former energy minister Piyasvasti Amranand - to chair the PTT board and oversee the sector, sent out a signal that energy reform would be approached with a focus on liberalisation and market forces.

On the other hand, there is former Bangkok senator Rosana Tositrakul, who along with many other social activists is championing nationalisation of the energy sector and its enterprises.

This latter group has called for the junta to regulate retail energy prices to make them lower for local consumption. Politically, both groups had in the past shared only one goal: to wrest energy trade and management out of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's control.

With the coups in 2006 and 2014 having toppled Thaksin and his cronies from power, the two groups have now turned their guns on each other.

The battle was triggered shortly after the May 22 coup, with the appointment of Piyasvasti to oversee the energy sector.

The opposing group then began to float information about trade, investment and the management of oil and gas prices to the public via social media. They said Thais would have a chance to consume cheap energy, unless the PTT took too much profit.

Thailand has plenty of petroleum resources and the potential even to join the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which would help determine the retail prices of oil and gas, they said.

Last week, the junta arrested a number of activists, including Veera Somkwamkid, for allegedly violating martial law by forming a gathering of more than five people to disturb social order as they marched from the South and in the capital to campaign for energy reform.

Veera's group activity was undertaken in coordination with members of the southern-based energy reform network, who are now embarking on a long march from Hat Yai to Bangkok. The march will take about two months to cover some 1,400 kilometres.

Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha said earlier that he was upset with some of these social movements in relation to energy reform.

The junta has already begun the task of reforming the energy sector, but it will not yield immediate results, he said.

It has set up an Energy Policy Committee and a so-called superboard, and has formulated strategies and work plans, made changes regarding board members, amended regulations and addressed conflicts of interest, he said.

Speaking in his weekly televised programme last week, Prayuth said energy reform was complicated and involved many dimensions such as pricing structure, production, energy sources and alternative energy.

"Reducing energy prices involves many factors and is linked with many other issues. We cannot do anything in haste," he said.

"Believing what appears on websites and social media could lead to more arguments," he added, without mentioning any group who had produced information in social media.

The new prime minister instructed concerned agencies to open a forum and conference in order to provide the public with a better understanding of energy issues.

A seminar titled "Energy Reform for National Reconciliation" will be held at the Army Club today.

It has been organised by the Petroleum Institute of Thailand with the assistance of Phra Buddha Issara, a leader of the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), which protested against the previous Yingluck Shinawatra-led government before the coup in May.

Participating in the seminar are interest groups, including PTT, energy concession-holders, representatives from the Energy Ministry, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand and the NCPO.

Phra Buddha Issara called on Rosana and Veera to join in the discussion, and posted on Facebook that Piyasvasti had earlier visited him at his temple to consult about the energy reform plan.

Although now in detention, Veera would be allowed to join today's seminar, said junta spokesman Winthai Suvari.

Yesterday, a group of Chulalongkorn University engineering alumni, who had also joined the PDRC, held their own seminar on energy reform.

The group insisted that the ownership of petroleum resources belonged to the state, and proposed that the state should operate and regulate petroleum exploration.

Furthermore, the Mineral Fuels Department should declare all the concession contracts it holds, it said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Rift-over-energy-reform-30241873.html


-- The Nation 2014-08-27

[Suriya4]

Now the Buddhist monk has turn into an oil expert. Also Hess has been robbing the Thais buy taking a large thai concession (1 bcf/d) and give it all to malaysia. Hess don't even have an office in Thailand, just a name plate in a fake address in central work.

[Ricardo]

Now the Buddhist monk has turn into an oil expert. Also Hess has been robbing the Thais buy taking a large thai concession (1 bcf/d) and give it all to malaysia. Hess don't even have an office in Thailand, just a name plate in a fake address in central work.

"Now the Buddhist monk has turn into an oil expert."

The article doesn't even mention former-DPM Suthep, what's he got to do with this ?

[retell]

Any chance that people with solar, wind power can feed back into to grid and get compensated for that ?

Been some talk bout that long ago but never heard of it again

[Utley]

"Last week, the junta arrested a number of activists, including Veera Somkwamkid, for allegedly violating martial law by forming a gathering of more than five people to disturb social order as they marched from the South and in the capital to campaign for energy reform."

My guess is that they were arrested for rocking the boat - an example of "Thai style democracy". And I bet there is more to come.

[BSJ]

The carousel of stupidity just goes round and round....

What's needed is a unified approach to supplying energy that encompasses coal, gas, petroleum and hydro with further inputs of alternates biomass, micro hydro, solar and wind.

Alternatives should be a part of any long term plan.

Biomass has been proven to be a viable substitute for other traditional energy sources.

Micro hydro has uses in remote areas.

Solar panels are limited but MSES can provide base load power.

Wind can be useful.

But the bottom line is we will need coal, gas, petroleum for many decades to come. Get used to it!