A waste-to-energy power plant in Saraburi province, operated by TPIPP. (Photo: TPIPP)
TPI Polene Power (TPIPP), the leading developer and operator of waste-to-energy (WTE) projects in Thailand based on capacity, plans to reduce coal usage next year with the goal of achieving 100% renewable fuel utilization by 2026.
The company anticipates utilizing 872,000 tons of coal for powering its Saraburi-based power plants this year, aiming to decrease this amount by over half to 320,000 tons next year, said Pakkapol Leopairut, the executive vice-president for accounting and finance. He mentioned that no coal will be utilized by 2026.
The move towards renewable energy begun in 2022 under its "Mission to No Emissions" initiative. The company expects to spend over 15 billion baht on the transition.
According to Pakkapol, TPIPP will replace coal with refuse-derived fuel (RDF), solar and wind energy, as well as heat from the cement production process at a factory run by parent firm TPI Polene.
The proportion from RDF is projected to increase to 74% of all fuel in 2026, up from 50% this year, while solar and wind energy will make up 18%, up from 11%. Others will come from heat, he said.
Pakkapol said the company's power generation capacity is projected at 496 MW this year, with 150MW from coal and the rest from heat and renewable fuels.
TPIPP plans to enhance its capacity through increased utilization of renewable energy. One such project involves building a WTE plant with a capacity of 9.9 MW in Nakhon Ratchasima, scheduled to commence operation in early 2026.
In 2021, the company secured approval to construct an 8 MW WTE plant in Songkhla province. TPIPP is currently awaiting the issuance of a construction license and anticipates the plant's inauguration early next year.
Approximately 70% of TPIPP generated electricity is sold to the state grid, while the remaining 30% is supplied to TPI Polene under the independent power producer plan.
