Thailand needs to speed up talks concerning a joint gas production prospect with Cambodia at their overlapping claim area (OCA) as the global trend for clean energy could hinder new petroleum development projects, which are blamed for emitting carbon dioxide, say energy experts.
The OCA talks were initiated in 2001 but did not make any headway beyond that date.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara announced that the issue would be tabled on Wednesday during Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet's visit to Thailand.
The OCA, which covers a 26,000-square-kilometre area claimed by both countries, is believed to be an area rich in fossil-fuel sources.
The area is likely to be a new petroleum source for both countries because the site is near the Bongkot and Erawan gas blocks, according to the Department of Mineral Fuels.
But if the joint petroleum development at the OCA faces a further delay, it would be more difficult for the two countries to push ahead with the project as the world is campaigning against global warming, caused by greenhouse gas emissions, according to Pichai Naripthaphan, advisor to Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and a former energy minister.
Gas is considered to be "cleaner" than oil, but according to Mr Pichai, it will not be easy to produce more gas in the future as many countries are committed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions generated by fossil fuels.
The new OCA talks will not necessarily start from scratch as guidelines on the joint development had already been made to pave the way for further negotiations, he said.
Both countries tend to focus on benefit sharing rather than border demarcation.
Mr Pichai expects the talks to lead to a gas business model similar to the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Development Area in the lower part of the Gulf of Thailand.
Echoing Mr Pichai, Khomgrich Tantravanich, secretary-general of the Energy Regulatory Commission, said he is also concerned about gas exploration and production development in the future due to global efforts to combat climate change.
Gas accounts for about 60% of the fuels used for power generation in Thailand, but the country is focusing more on renewable energy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Businesses also want to use more renewable energy to avoid non-tariff barriers imposed on their products exported to countries which implement a policy to reduce products made from carbon-intensive manufacturing, said Mr Khomgrich.
Hydrogen fuel and nuclear energy from small modular reactors appear to be promising sources of clean energy and they have the potential to compete with fossil fuels and some types of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, which are considered to be intermittent sources of power, he said.
Though the OCA talks need to take more heed of these matters, the two countries should not rush as this could affect the decision-making process, said Kurujit Nakornthap, former permanent secretary of energy.
The OCA issue must be dealt with in a careful manner, he said.
Montri Rawanchaikul, chief executive of PTT Exploration and Production Plc, the operator of the Erawan and Bongkot blocks, expects the new OCA talks to lead to significant progress.