Today, energy is central to our quality of life, and it is a crucial factor for economic growth and employment. In Thailand, the demand for energy is constantly rising. However, due to the limited number of domestic energy sources, the country depends heavily on energy imports. Energy efficiency is therefore important for raising energy security, reducing household expenditure and production costs, and lowering imports and the trade deficit. Greater energy efficiency also increases competitiveness, while helping to mitigate pollution and emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) responsible for climate change.

At the end of 2010, the Ministry of Energy commissioned the Energy Policy and Planning Office to draw up an Energy Efficiency Development Plan (EEDP) for the period 2011 to 2030. Under this plan, Thailand should achieve a 25 per cent reduction in its energy intensity by 2030, measured against the base year of 2010. Parliament approved the EEDP in June 2011, and early in 2013 it also agreed a five-year action plan for the immediate future.

Standardised energy efficiency approaches contribute directly to CO2 emission reductions. In support of this, uniform baseline criteria have been established for all energy efficiency measures; new and improved energy standards have been introduced; existing support instruments have been strengthened; and climate-relevant instruments have been used and further developed for the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Plan.

The Thai-German programme: Energy Efficiency Development Plan was commissioned as part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Environment and Building Ministry. To support implementation of the 20-year Energy Efficiency Development Plan (2011–2030), the programme promotes energy efficiency in industry and in the building sector. To this end it is devising standards and incentives which will have a direct impact in terms of reducing CO2 emissions. Examples of instruments being developed include the Standard Offer Programme, a subsidy programme based on energy savings achieved, and Energy Efficiency Resource Standards, which is an energy saving obligation for utilities. The programme will also link the EEDP with climate policy by identifying NAMA’s (nationally appropriate mitigation actions) based on energy efficiency policies.

A database of energy efficiency indicators has been developed and introduced, in cooperation with the appropriate statistics unit of the Ministry of Energy. These indicators are now reported in Thailand’s annual energy efficiency status report. That, in turn, has improved the understanding of the significance of energy efficiency measures, and the state of their development.

The new energy efficiency concepts, such as the Energy Efficiency Resource Standards and the Standard Offer Programme have been discussed and elaborated with the relevant stakeholders. This did much to deepen the level of understanding regarding these concepts and to encourage their inclusion in the Energy Efficiency Development Plan of Thailand.

Training courses on energy performance contracting have been held for newly formed energy service companies, in order to counteract the emergence of bottlenecks as these companies become established. Furthermore, service-oriented approaches have also been trialled.

Using a database specially compiled for the purpose, the standards applied in the energy certification of buildings have been thoroughly assessed. This led to recommendations being made on the adaptation and renewal of standards for low-energy-consumption buildings. It also prompted a discussion of how to improve procedures for enforcing the energy certification of buildings.

The development of a NAMA on energy efficiency has resulted in closer cooperation between the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Energy. This has raised awareness in both ministries regarding their respective objectives, and of the synergies they can achieve through collaboration. In particular, the two ministries have come to view MRV (measuring, reporting and verification) as essential to the successful implementation of the NAMA. It was therefore incorporated into the first training on energy efficiency policy impact assessments, which was attended by both ministries.

Truong Duy