BANGKOK, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Thailand will expand its household solar power program to 10 gigawatts and buy surplus electricity from participants at 2.20 baht (about 0.07 U.S. dollars) per kilowatt-hour under 20-year contracts, a government official said on Friday.
The National Energy Policy Council raised the ceiling for the "people's solar" scheme to 10 gigawatts, enough for around one million households, from an initial proposal of 5 gigawatts, said deputy government spokesperson Lalida Periswiwatana.
Purchases will run on a net billing basis, with households consuming their own output first and selling only the excess, capped at 5 kilowatts per meter, Lalida said, adding that contracts were extended from 10 years to 20 to match the working life of panels, with the additional intake covering 2026 to 2028.
Households may now also mount panels on the ground and on water, not just rooftops, she said.
The council gave the energy and interior ministries and the three state electricity utilities one month to produce a grid readiness plan covering generation forecasting, real-time monitoring, transmission and distribution control, as well as battery storage.
Expanding to 10 gigawatts would give the public a greater role in producing clean energy, but it has to move in step with grid readiness, so the added capacity does not undermine the security of the power system, Lalida said.
The deputy spokesperson noted that agencies were also told to find a way to amend existing 10-year contracts so earlier participants need not cancel and reapply, and the industry ministry was assigned to draw up a recycling plan for panels and batteries. ■