Thailand: FTI urges biomass crops

Thailand: FTI urges biomass crops

The business sector is proposing a plan to encourage farmers to grow energy
crops to supply well-promoted biomass projects, improving their income while
helping to produce raw materials for sustainable power generation.

Sompong Tancharoenphol, vice-chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries
(FTI), said government policy is to support to more than 3 million people,
mostly in remote areas, to add value to their crops.

He said the FTI supports farmers growing more energy and biofuel crops by
planting fast-growing energy plants that can be rotated easily such as
mangium and eucalyptus.

"These fast-growing crops can be harvested within three to five years,
allowing farmers to have additional income from supplying raw materials to
biomass power projects, which the government also supports," he said.

He said the FTI, Kasetsart University and the Electricity Generating
Authority of Thailand have conducted a feasibility study on planting these
crops, with the FTI presenting it to a meeting of the Joint Standing
Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB). It is expected to be
approved by the JSCCIB soon before the proposal is passed to the government.

The FTI plan encourages more than 3 million farmers to grow fast-growing
crops in some abandoned areas, particularly in denuded forests, which cover
some 51 million rai across the country, including some areas in the planned
Eastern Economic Corridor.

However, the government has to change some laws and regulations to allow
farmers to grow lucrative crops in denuded forest areas, said Mr Sompong.

"We are working along with government policy that wants our cooperation in
supporting farmers to have higher incomes," he said.

Smai Leesakul, another vice-chairman of the FTI, said the federation is
negotiating with several agencies and private biomass producers to choose
local farmers as their raw material suppliers.

The FTI expects to start the first phase of the project by encouraging
farmers to grow biofuel crops on 15 million rai, helping to generate some
3,000 megawatts of biomass power, said Mr Smai.

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1319075/fti-urges-biomass-crops

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com