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ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
YUTHANA PRAIWAN
Thailand should aim to position itself as a global ethanol production hub, said Prasert Bunsumpun, the president and chief executive of the majority state-owned energy giant PTT Plc. The country should leverage its strong agricultural base to become a global leader in biofuels, he said at an Asean energy ministers' meeting yesterday in Bangkok.
''[Thailand] has an advantage over everyone else, as we have plentiful raw materials such as molasses and cassava. We can make a large amount of ethanol cheaply,'' Mr Prasert said.
Fuel blends of 10% and 20% ethanol are already widely used locally, and policymakers hope to introduce E85 fuel with 85% ethanol by the end of the year.
Statistics now show petrol consumption decreasing as motorists switch to alternatives, making ethanol production even more important.
Mr Prasert said the use of ethanol-petrol blends could eventually follow the example of Brazil, a global leader in the use of ethanol for transport.
A total of 45 ethanol producers have registered with authorities for a combined production capacity of 12 million litres per day.
But only 11 factories are in production with daily output of 1.57 million litres. Output by the end of the year is projected to rise by another 2.5 million litres per day as eight new plants start production.
Authorities expect that demand for ethanol-based fuels will rise even further starting this month after the government agreed to cut excise taxes. Prices for gasohol are now nearly 10 baht per litre cheaper than premium petrol.
Meanwhile, overall fuel demand continues to decline as high prices have led to greater fuel conservation by motorists.
According to the Department of Energy Business, diesel use in July dropped 11% to an average of 40.3 million litres a day from 45.2 million in June. Sales fell 20% from the 51.5 million litres recorded in July 2007.
Premium 95 petrol sales dropped to 500,000 litres a day in July from 650,000 in June, while 91 petrol fell to 8.6 million litres a day from 9.4 million in June.
Even sales of gasohol 95 and gasohol 91, both 10% ethanol blends, declined to 7.6 million litres a day in July from eight million in June. Sales of E20 gasohol rose to 890,000 litres from 810,000 litres.
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