Petroleum concession grants should be scrapped as part of national reforms, says a former senator.
National Reform Council (NRC) member Rosana Tositrakul, a former senator who has spoken out against national energy giant PTT Plc and made controversial calls for energy reform, said changes to the petroleum concession system were needed to give more power to the people.
Thailand should not allow energy security to be dominated by the private sector via the granting of concessions, she said.
She was speaking during the NRC debate on reform proposals put forth by its 18 committees working on reforms in various sectors.
Under the concession system, she said, Thais have to consume petroleum − oil and gas − at the same price as imported petroleum products even though there are indigenous supplies.
Ms Rosana said Thais must have the right to manage their natural resources and gain access to state energy information.
"Currently, Thailand's petroleum concessions are under the control of private investors while governments have failed to make a decent effort to promote renewable energy development at the household level," she said.
Thongchat Hongladarom, PTT's first governor, is now chairman of the NRC's committee on energy reform.
He said reform should cover the use of coal and renewable energy in electricity generation with a view to it replacing petroleum and gas.
Kiat Sittheeamorn, a former Democrat list MP, wrote on his Facebook page yesterday that he had asked in parliament why petroleum prices in the local market went up 15% in 2011-2013 despite a drop of 3% in world oil prices during the same period.
He also asked why Thailand had to import liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) even though the quantity of local reserves is sufficient.
"On the day this government came to power, people had high hopes of seeing energy reform put into practice. They didn't trust the information available at the time.
"We are still waiting for the facts on production costs at petroleum fields," he said.