What does the average British expat think of Tommy?

[webfact]

Coal plant proposed for pristine Thai coast sparks outcry
TED ANDERSEN, Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — Plans to build an 800-megawatt coal power plant near some of Thailand's most popular beaches have sparked protests and a hunger strike by activists who say officials aren't considering its impact on the pristine environment that makes the area an international tourist destination.

More than 100 members of the Save Andaman from Coal Network this week staged a march and sit-in outside the prime minister's office in the nation's capital against plans to build the plant near southern Thailand's Andaman coast about 650 kilometers (400 miles) south of Bangkok.

The tranquil Krabi province and its islands are famed for picturesque limestone cliffs and white sand beaches, one of which was the centerpiece of the Leonardo DiCaprio film "The Beach."

"If this power plant happens, southern Thailand will lose a lot," said Krabi resident Akradej Chakjinda, who has fasted since July 10 in protest.

Protesters say the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, or EGAT, is pushing ahead with a bidding process for the plant and a seaport that would receive overseas shipments of coal before an environmental impact assessment has been completed. Plans to launch the bidding process were delayed until next month, which EGAT says is unrelated to the ongoing protests.

The coal plant is part of a critical energy infrastructure that will provide Thailand with energy security as natural gas reserves in the Gulf of Thailand dry up within 10 years, EGAT says.

The state power authority has said it envisions building nine coal power plants in the south over the next two decades.

It had planned to begin the bidding process on this one in advance of the environmental review to save time, a government official said.

"I want to emphasize that this is totally legal and we will not sign any contract with the constructor who wins the bid process until we pass" the environmental assessment, Anuchart Palakawong Na Autthaya, head of environmental management for the project, told The Nation newspaper Monday.

Krabi remains Thailand's second-largest area of sea grass beds, which provide a feeding ground for the near extinct dugongs, a manatee-like marine mammal. It is also one of Thailand's major tourist draws. Tourism to the provinces along the Andaman coast generated more than 376 billion baht ($11 billion) in 2015, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Krabi and some of the islands off its coast are known as Thailand's most beautiful beaches, including Koh Phi Phi, which rose to international prominence after being featured in DiCaprio's film.

The Save Andaman from Coal Network, a loose collaboration of environmental, agricultural, tourist and other groups from southern provinces, began demonstrations July 10 but say their demands — which include a 3-year waiting period to see if the province can produce 100 percent renewable energy — have been ignored.

"I've seen the beauty of the Andaman Sea," said Daodin Patavatto, a Buddhist monk joining the protests. "The Andaman is not for one small group of people. It's for everyone."


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-07-21

[halloween]

"their demands — which include a 3-year waiting period to see if the province can produce 100 percent renewable energy"

Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

[FloridaExport]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

[bangkokfrog]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

The beaches may not be "pristine", but this is a spectacular and beautiful part of the world which any aware and caring government should go to great lengths not to spoil.

[halloween]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

The beaches may not be "pristine", but this is a spectacular and beautiful part of the world which any aware and caring government should go to great lengths not to spoil.

First of all, you are accepting the word of a rabid pack of NIMBYs that that would happen. Secondly, is it likely that the whole area will be spoiled. Even if they intend to build multiple power stations, one coal unloader should be sufficient. And thirdly, the locals are quite happy using energy generated elsewhere, just don't want the inconvenience of having it generated locally. Describing their goal of 100% renewables as a pipe dream would be generous, even if they decided wind generators all along their pristine beaches was acceptable. I fully expect a hydro dam would not be, even if there was a suitable site.

Edited July 21, 2015 by halloween

[PatOngo]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

The beaches may not be "pristine", but this is a spectacular and beautiful part of the world which any aware and caring government should go to great lengths not to spoil.

............but think of the profits to be made from the coal plants.

[FloridaExport]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

The beaches may not be "pristine", but this is a spectacular and beautiful part of the world which any aware and caring government should go to great lengths not to spoil.

............but think of the profits to be made from the coal plants.

My completely unfounded suspicion is that many of the people protesting the plant are being paid and organized by the current electricity provider in order to keep their own profits higher.

[halloween]

Where are these pristine beaches? All the beaches I've seen in Thailand were covered in garbage.

If you stay on this stretch of coast, you will notice that at low tide it's along walk to the water. At high tide, 100m from shore, my nuts are still dry.

The "resort" we stayed at was also distinguished by the tar road that finished with a 3m drop to the beach. No barrier or warning sign if you missed the goat track turn-off.

[webfact]

COAL PLANT
Egat risks lawsuit if Krabi bidding plan goes ahead
Pratch Rujivanarom,
Anapat deechuay
The Nation


Rangsit University professor Smith Tungkasmit and Prof Rapee Sagarik

Opponents of coal plant want impact on environment assessed before builder is selected

BANGKOK: -- THE Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) and Energy Ministry could face legal action if they proceed with plans to launch a bidding process to find a company to build a coal-fired power plant in Krabi.

Stop Global Warming Association president Srisuwan Janya said yesterday he planned to sue Egat and the ministry if the bidding process starts.

"This action [Egat's bid] is clearly illegal, so I'll join forces with the Protect Andaman from Coal Network to file a lawsuit with the Administrative Court. I have already been collecting evidence to use against the accused side," he said.

Srisuwan was backed by academics, who said that Egat's plan to call for bids from firms to build the coal plant before the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project is contravened the constitution. The bidding was originally scheduled for today, but has been delayed by two weeks.

Decharut Sukkumnoed, a professor at Kasetsart University's Faculty of Economics, noted that according to Section 67 of the interim constitution the project cannot proceed before the EIA and an Environmental Health Impact Assessment have been done. So, Egat would be breaking the law, if they went ahead with the bidding. "The bid would also indirectly force the EIA to pass because Egat can claim that they have already finished the bidding and it would affect the contract with construction firm that wins," he said.

Srisuwan said the prime minister had warned on Monday that electricity fees would rise if no new power plants were built, but he said people do not oppose the construction of new power plants - they oppose the use of coal as the source of energy.

"Why does the PM still insist on using coal even when it is dirty and polluted, when we have many alternative sources of energy to use?" he said.

Yesterday, Prayut stressed that the bidding was just the first stage of preparation and people should not worry. "There are procedures until the project is accepted and it is not easy to pass. If we keep worry on every matter, we cannot do anything," the PM said.

He said the South need more power plants and that alternative sources of power were not good options as it was not clear that they could supply power to the system regularly.

"If power is short and electricity costs high, who will take the responsibility? If they don't want the power plant, so be it, but they have to accept costly power fees. I am ready to comply with everything but don't complain if there is a lack of power," he said.

The PM also warned coal protesters to be aware that the Public Gathering Act will be enforced next month.

Decharut noted that even if the power plant is built, electricity cost would rise because people would have to subsidise the cost of power plant construction. The cost of building a power plant was about Bt49.5 billion or around Bt62 million per megawatt of power it will generate, which he said was expensive, as the cost was usually Bt50 million per megawatt.

Sasin Chalermlarp, secretary general of the Seub Nakhasathien Foundation, also raised doubts about the quality of coal and coal supply. In a note on his Facebook page, Sasin said the new Krabi coal-fired power plant would have to pay expensive prices for the coal it used.

"The Krabi coal-fired power plant is meant to use high-quality coal which can produce of up to 5,000 kilo-calories of energy per kilogram, have less ash, less sulphur emissions and have less than 30 per cent of moisture. But such high-quality coal stock is low in Indonesia now. Furthermore, Japan, South Korea and other rich countries want to buy the high-quality coal as well," Sasin said.

"We have less chance of getting the high-quality coal regularly as the richer countries will get more coal than us and we have to buy [coal] from far-away Australia, which will increase the transportation cost," he said.

His suggestion was supported by Chariya Senpong, Climate and Energy Campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia, who said Krabi could be totally powered by renewable energy in as little as three years, if stakeholders work together, she said.

Yesterday, a protest continued for a second day outside Government House against the coal plant in Krabi. Local villagers said they have three demands for the PM - to call off both EIA studies, and the bid to find a builder for the power plant, and for a committee to be set up to review the project that includes all stakeholders.

Local villagers fear the coal plant and transportation pier will destroy the tourism, which is central to economy.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Egat-risks-lawsuit-if-Krabi-bidding-plan-goes-ahea-30264946.html


-- The Nation 2015-07-22

[rickb]

I fully support EGAT's right to build more power plants in order to meet the energy demand of the country. I also understand EGAT's desire to diversify their fuel usage for generating electricity. I believe most of Thailand's existing power plants are either hydro powered (using the energy of water) or are using natural gas to generate electricity. The need to have power plants that burn other fossil fuels is necessary to ensure a reliable supply of electricity. Additionally, there is sufficient evidence from around the world that proves that coal-fired power plants can be operated cleanly. But, the ash control, dust suppression and flue gas desulfurization equipment that is need to operate cleanly is costly and EGAT needs to be prepared to pay dearly for it. If EGAT can demonstrate in the EIA that the environment will not be negatively impacted and that they are committed to providing all of the necessary pollution control equipment, then I would support the construction of a new coal-fired plant in Krabi. People around the world are against having a new coal-fired power plant built adjacent to their property. But someone has to be the neighbor if a country needs to expand it's electric generating capacity in order to stay ahead of the electricity demand curve. I even support nuclear plants being constructed here. But that is a much longer process and Thailand can't wait that long to expand it's generating capacity. There should be a law in Thailand (I'm not sure if there is or isn't at the present), as there is in many western countries, that allows the bidding process to proceed while the EIA is being completed. However, no actual construction can begin until the EIA has been reviewed and accepted. Bidding doesn't impact the environment but allows EGAT to be that much more ready to begin construction once all approvals have been received. It's understood by all bidders that there is a risk the project to which they are bidding may never actually get off the ground, if all of the necessary approvals are not received. That is a normal risk accepted by the bidders. So, the people who are protesting that EGAT is proceeding with the bidding process before the EIA is approved, shouldn't have the right to protest this action by EGAT.

[BSJ]

"Coal plant proposed for pristine Thai coast sparks outcry" Don't worry you silly protestors, they will be using pristine coal for fuel, it may lead to the beaches becoming pristine too!

[MockingJay]

Could anyone please let me know what "pristine beaches" they are referring to?

Edited July 22, 2015 by MockingJay

[gyrosman]

Try cleaning the street markets who dump there waste in storm drains, trash everywhere, people tossing trash from their vehicles, look at the side of the roads, the dirty rivers. Pristine beach, once upon a time it was Phuket and Pattaya, now crap. Teach how to respect their land better. Remember last week 3 ELEPHANTS die after drinking pristine water where farmers use chemicals on their crops. I buy overseas food only. I go to the village and many are always sick and weak.

Power plants are the least of their problems.

[oneday]

In all likelihood these plants can probably be built in a manner that safe-guards the environment, but it would be expensive and I doubt they will spend that kind of money, nor do I believe they have the expertise to build safe plants.

[halloween]

Try cleaning the street markets who dump there waste in storm drains, trash everywhere, people tossing trash from their vehicles, look at the side of the roads, the dirty rivers. Pristine beach, once upon a time it was Phuket and Pattaya, now crap. Teach how to respect their land better. Remember last week 3 ELEPHANTS die after drinking pristine water where farmers use chemicals on their crops. I buy overseas food only. I go to the village and many are always sick and weak.

Power plants are the least of their problems.

The elephants died from contact with a mains powered (220V) electric fence.

[halloween]

Does anybody know exactly where the coal unloader and power station are proposed to be built? Between Ranong and Phangna there is a lot of country with very little development and almost no tourists (or potential),

[Srikcir]

A fossil-fueled power plant on the Krabi coast is doable but it must be carefully planned, designed and constructed.

Case in point are the USA Hawaiian Islands. All electricity for the Islands must be generated within the Islands. Obviously, any power plant will be within short distances from any pristine beach.

Electric Beach at Kahe Point Beach Park is one of the best snorkeling spots in Oahu because of the clarity of the water and abundance of reef fish. Next to the beach is a 650MW oil-fired power plant.

Maybe the Junta should understand the socio-economic factors that were considered for placement of the Electric Beach power plant that it can apply to Krabi. A government paid fact-finding trip to Hawaii would be a great incentive.

[oztaurus]

There are some interesting parallels to Australia an I think i can offer some insight into other aspects of building power stations (source: My father was chief metallurgist for the company which won most of the contracts to build the boilers and superheater pipework for the last round of coal fired power stations in Victoria and NSW.

The building of a power station is a LONG process. Dad typically quotes (in an Australian context of EIA, OHS and labour laws) - 15 years from the initial decision to go ahead until the first watt of power is generated. Thus if Thailand only has natural gas to run power for 10 years .......

2nd: Similar to Australia where, after Paul Keating changed the tax laws and the companies with the knowledge to build the infrastructure decided that the game was no longer worth the candle, thus Australia could not pull together the expertise and factory facilities to build power stations itself (apart from the civil works part) ..... I have seen no evidence that Thailand has the home-grown expertise and facilities required.

3rd: Therefore where to buy a power station? The best bet is probably China, but they are busy commissioning a new power station every month (or is it every week - I honestly forget, but they are building a LOT) .... so if you want one from China - take a number, the queue is over there.

[smutcakes]

Does anybody know exactly where the coal unloader and power station are proposed to be built? Between Ranong and Phangna there is a lot of country with very little development and almost no tourists (or potential),

Between the two it is mostly national parks.

I would of thought you have detail of the plant considering you wrote "one coal unloader should be sufficient"

Or did you just write that without knowing anything about the proposals?

[sawadee1947]

COAL PLANT

Egat risks lawsuit if Krabi bidding plan goes ahead

Pratch Rujivanarom,

Anapat deechuay

The Nation

Rangsit University professor Smith Tungkasmit and Prof Rapee Sagarik

Opponents of coal plant want impact on environment assessed before builder is selected

BANGKOK: -- THE Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) and Energy Ministry could face legal action if they proceed with plans to launch a bidding process to find a company to build a coal-fired power plant in Krabi.

Stop Global Warming Association president Srisuwan Janya said yesterday he planned to sue Egat and the ministry if the bidding process starts.

"This action [Egat's bid] is clearly illegal, so I'll join forces with the Protect Andaman from Coal Network to file a lawsuit with the Administrative Court. I have already been collecting evidence to use against the accused side," he said.

Srisuwan was backed by academics, who said that Egat's plan to call for bids from firms to build the coal plant before the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project is contravened the constitution. The bidding was originally scheduled for today, but has been delayed by two weeks.

Decharut Sukkumnoed, a professor at Kasetsart University's Faculty of Economics, noted that according to Section 67 of the interim constitution the project cannot proceed before the EIA and an Environmental Health Impact Assessment have been done. So, Egat would be breaking the law, if they went ahead with the bidding. "The bid would also indirectly force the EIA to pass because Egat can claim that they have already finished the bidding and it would affect the contract with construction firm that wins," he said.

Srisuwan said the prime minister had warned on Monday that electricity fees would rise if no new power plants were built, but he said people do not oppose the construction of new power plants - they oppose the use of coal as the source of energy.

"Why does the PM still insist on using coal even when it is dirty and polluted, when we have many alternative sources of energy to use?" he said.

Yesterday, Prayut stressed that the bidding was just the first stage of preparation and people should not worry. "There are procedures until the project is accepted and it is not easy to pass. If we keep worry on every matter, we cannot do anything," the PM said.

He said the South need more power plants and that alternative sources of power were not good options as it was not clear that they could supply power to the system regularly.

"If power is short and electricity costs high, who will take the responsibility? If they don't want the power plant, so be it, but they have to accept costly power fees. I am ready to comply with everything but don't complain if there is a lack of power," he said.

The PM also warned coal protesters to be aware that the Public Gathering Act will be enforced next month.

Decharut noted that even if the power plant is built, electricity cost would rise because people would have to subsidise the cost of power plant construction. The cost of building a power plant was about Bt49.5 billion or around Bt62 million per megawatt of power it will generate, which he said was expensive, as the cost was usually Bt50 million per megawatt.

Sasin Chalermlarp, secretary general of the Seub Nakhasathien Foundation, also raised doubts about the quality of coal and coal supply. In a note on his Facebook page, Sasin said the new Krabi coal-fired power plant would have to pay expensive prices for the coal it used.

"The Krabi coal-fired power plant is meant to use high-quality coal which can produce of up to 5,000 kilo-calories of energy per kilogram, have less ash, less sulphur emissions and have less than 30 per cent of moisture. But such high-quality coal stock is low in Indonesia now. Furthermore, Japan, South Korea and other rich countries want to buy the high-quality coal as well," Sasin said.

"We have less chance of getting the high-quality coal regularly as the richer countries will get more coal than us and we have to buy [coal] from far-away Australia, which will increase the transportation cost," he said.

His suggestion was supported by Chariya Senpong, Climate and Energy Campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia, who said Krabi could be totally powered by renewable energy in as little as three years, if stakeholders work together, she said.

Yesterday, a protest continued for a second day outside Government House against the coal plant in Krabi. Local villagers said they have three demands for the PM - to call off both EIA studies, and the bid to find a builder for the power plant, and for a committee to be set up to review the project that includes all stakeholders.

Local villagers fear the coal plant and transportation pier will destroy the tourism, which is central to economy.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Egat-risks-lawsuit-if-Krabi-bidding-plan-goes-ahea-30264946.html

-- The Nation 2015-07-22

Local villagers fear the coal plant and transportation pier will destroy the tourism, which is central to economy.

Yes they are right to fear. But in this case the Thais are as stupid as the Ozzies in Port Headland. Barrier Reef? We don't care. And here: Andaman sea? We don't care. Maybe one thing is different, but I'm not sure: Here the profit will go directly into someones pocket....

[halloween]

Does anybody know exactly where the coal unloader and power station are proposed to be built? Between Ranong and Phangna there is a lot of country with very little development and almost no tourists (or potential),

Between the two it is mostly national parks.

I would of thought you have detail of the plant considering you wrote "one coal unloader should be sufficient"

Or did you just write that without knowing anything about the proposals?

I have been unable to find much at all, let alone a map showing location. the only web site I did find had an arrow , which turned out to be pointing at the centre of Krabi. What I did find was a general location for both, and that they would be joined by a 8.4 km coal conveyor. The coal is to be double handled, from bulk carriers to smaller ships, to the unloader.

But of course you knew that, having done your own research. Coal unloaders are expensive, even more so where the coastal shelf is very gently sloped, IMHO it should be cheaper to run belts or a rail line from the head of that conveyor, than build multiple unloaders, especially as there is no deepwater location available. That is based on 20 years coal-fired PS operation, with emphasis on coal handling and water treatment.

I look forward to your far more extensive research and experience being shared with us.

BTW the site did give co-ordinates. when N and E are added to them, they give the location of Krabi. Very helpful.

Edited July 22, 2015 by halloween

[smutcakes]

Does anybody know exactly where the coal unloader and power station are proposed to be built? Between Ranong and Phangna there is a lot of country with very little development and almost no tourists (or potential),

Between the two it is mostly national parks.

I would of thought you have detail of the plant considering you wrote "one coal unloader should be sufficient"

Or did you just write that without knowing anything about the proposals?

I have been unable to find much at all, let alone a map showing location. the only web site I did find had an arrow , which turned out to be pointing at the centre of Krabi. What I did find was a general location for both, and that they would be joined by a 8.4 km coal conveyor. The coal is to be double handled, from bulk carriers to smaller ships, to the unloader.

But of course you knew that, having done your own research. Coal unloaders are expensive, even more so where the coastal shelf is very gently sloped, IMHO it should be cheaper to run belts or a rail line from the head of that conveyor, than build multiple unloaders, especially as there is no deepwater location available. That is based on 20 years coal-fired PS operation, with emphasis on coal handling and water treatment.

I look forward to your far more extensive research and experience being shared with us.

I don't know, but then i don't speak as if i am a professor and knowledgeable about everything as you seem to try and portray. Floods, coal power, is there no end to your knowledge. (until someone calls you out on it of course)

[halloween]

I don't know, but then i don't speak as if i am a professor and knowledgeable about everything as you seem to try and portray. Floods, coal power, is there no end to your knowledge. (until someone calls you out on it of course)

I must admit I always enjoy your unsubstantiated and biased opinions too.

[smutcakes]

I don't know, but then i don't speak as if i am a professor and knowledgeable about everything as you seem to try and portray. Floods, coal power, is there no end to your knowledge. (until someone calls you out on it of course)

I must admit I always enjoy your unsubstantiated and biased opinions too.

Opinions are opinions, by there nature they are often biased and unsubstantiated, but no more than your own.