Fuel sourcing needs rethink

       It was most fortunate that no life was lost in Kanchanaburi province over the weekend when the famous River Kwai suddenly broke its banks,inundating many resorts and residential areas,after a large volume of water was discharged from the Srinakarind dam without advance warning. Nevertheless, several resorts and houses were damaged by the unexpected deluge, which raised the water level in the river by almost two metres in some areas.
       The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat), which oversees all hydro-electric dams in the country, later issued an apology to the affected victims in Kanchanaburi and promised proper compensation.The power-generating authority also explained that the release of water from the dam was prompted by an emergency situation which involved the sudden cutback of natural gas - reportedly some 1,600 million cubic feet of natural gas from Yadana gas field in Burma and from Bongkot gas field in the Gulf - which is needed each day to feed the power plants to generate electricity.Thus it was necessary to offset the production shortfall via hydro-electric generation in order to avoid a "brown out" which would have inflicted greater and wider damage to the economy. Several hydro-electric dams and power plants fuelled by coal and bunker oil had to increase production during the critical period.
       Even though Egat's excuse for the need to open the floodgates to release water from the Srinakarind dam may seem reasonable, it should strive to ensure better safety for the provincial population and their property.An early warning system which alerts people in case of an emergency situation that necessitates the sudden release of water from the dam must be devised and installed. Egat should count itself lucky that this time no lives were lost.
       Of greater concern than the threat of flooding downstream of a dam, however, is Thailand's future energy security. The "technical" problem at the Yadana gas field in Burma may have been beyond Egat's control.But a proper explanation is needed from the Burmese side to expel suspicions held by some in Thailand that the incident may have been politically motivated. By chance or by design, the "technical hitch" occurred one day after Thailand circulated a letter to Asean member countries at a meeting in Chiang Mai asking them to adopt a consensus urging the release of prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, following her conviction by the Burmese court for illegally housing an American visitor.
       Whatever the real reason for the abrupt stoppage of the gas flow from Burma (which resumed a couple of hours later), the incident should serve as a wake-up call for our energy policy-makers and for Egat to rethink our energy policy, particularly our heavy dependence on gas supplies from Burma.
       About 70% of Thailand's electricity is generated by gas-fired power plants, with most of the gas supplied through the pipeline linked to the Yadana field in Burma. Also, all the gas supplied by various sources is just enough to feed the power plants.
       In other words, there is nothing in reserve. In case any of the sources is disrupted, the power plants fuelled by gas would have to revert to other fuels such as coal,bunker oil or hydro-electricity.
       Given the political instability in Burma and the unpredictability of the military junta, it is too risky for Thailand to put all its eggs in one basket. Attempts must be made to diversify our energy sources and to lessen our lopsided dependence on gas, despite the fact that it is considered the greenest of all the fuels.