EGAT Considers 2,000-Megawatt Nuclear Power Program as Natural Gas Reserves in Gulf of Thailand Dwindle

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) (Nonthaburi, Thailand) is looking to explore the nuclear energy sector in view of the depleting natural gas reserves located in the Gulf of Thailand, which are expected to be completely exhausted by 2030. Thailand is entirely dependent on natural gas for its energy requirements; most of the supply is imported, 25% of which is procured by neighbor Myanmar.

In a bid to minimize energy dependency margins, as well as insulate the sector from fluctuating global oil prices that govern natural gas imports, EGAT has proposed the construction of two 1,000-megawatt (MW) nuclear power plants in the country.

As part of a 15-year power development plan (PDP), feasibility studies are under way for the nuclear program. The feasibility report for the 2,000-MW nuclear program is expected to be ready by 2010, after which other stages of the project will be initiated. International power majors from South Korea, Japan, the U.S. and Canada are in the fray to participate in Thailand's nuclear power project. Plant sites, technology specifications, and the technology provider are expected to be finalized by the end of this year.

According to sources from EGAT, the first nuclear power plant is expected to commence operations in 2020, and the second will commence operations a year later. Although the construction of nuclear power projects entails high costs to the tune of $2,000 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of power output, compared to $1,600 per kWh for coal and $800 per kWh for natural gas-based power plants, they also deliver higher fuel efficiency and power output of 300,000 kWh per kilogram of fuel, as compared to 3 kWh per kilogram of conventional fuel.

During the last decade, EGAT has been involved in several local power ventures to improve the energy security of Thailand in addition to investing in several energy projects in the neighboring countries of Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and China. EGAT's current projects include the 710-MW South Bangkok combined-cycle block 3 project, scheduled for startup in 2009; and the 710-MW Songkhla (Chana) combined-cycle power project, aimed at providing base load supply to southern Thailand and due to go online last year. The Songkhla project also comprises a 25.8-kilometer, 230-kilovolt (kV) transmission line, linking the plant with Hat Yai 2 substation. Another 710-MW combined-cycle power plant at Bang Pakong block 5 will be operational by this year. The 670-MW North Bangkok combined cycle block 1 plant is slated to begin operations in 2010.

A few renewable energy ventures also have been completed by EGAT, notable among them the 500-kW Pha Bong solar power plant in Mae Hong Son province, which is the largest solar venture in Thailand. The project was commissioned in 2007. EGAT's hydroelectric ventures--the 597-MW Nam Ngum 2, the 920-MW Nam Theun 2, and the 220-MW Theun-Hinboun expansion ventures--are due for commissioning in 2009, 2011 and 2012, respectively.

EGAT also has been involved in several domestic transmission projects during the last decade, including the upgrade of the Central-Southern Tie Line from 115 kV to 230 kV. A 500-kV transmission system project to import power from each of the Nam Theun 2 and Nam Ngum 2 hydropower ventures is also in the cards, while a proposed link from the Theun-Hinboun expansion project is awaiting clearance. In addition, construction of 230/115 kV high-voltage stations at New Nava Nakorn is due for action.

The bulk power supply project for the greater Bangkok area is being executed in two phases. The first phase is scheduled for completion this year, and the second phase is scheduled for completion by 2011. Transmission networks to cover areas other than Greater Bangkok will be established through the transmission system expansion project 11.

Other transmission projects have been envisaged to import power from independent power producers (IPP) in Eastern Thailand, and other new IPP ventures totaling 4,400 MW due to be established through 2014.

Six small hydropower ventures with a total capacity of 78.7 MW, a solar power project with a capacity of 1 MW, and wind energy ventures with a total capacity of 2 MW also are under various stages of development.

EGAT's latest nuclear program is likely to gain momentum during the next few years, once the Cabinet approves the proposed ventures.

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