Recent Situation and Strategic Development of Advanced Biofuels in Thailand

Abstract

In 2007 Thailand Ministry of Energy boldly announced a 15-year Alternative Energy Development Plan (AEDP) to boost the share of renewable energy (RE) from 6.4% to 14.1% of total energy consumption by 2022. In Nov. 2011, the said AEDP was replaced by a bolder 10-year Plan (2012-2021), in which the former target for bioethanol production was kept at 9.0 dam³/d (9.00 ML/d) while that for biodiesel was revised upwards to 5.97 dam³/d by 2021. On top of that, a brand new target for second-generation biodiesel is set at 25.0 dam³/d in 2021, starting from essentially nil. The major differences are that the former share of alternative energy (AE) is to rise from 9.4% of total energy consumption in 2008 to 20% in 2022, whereas revised share is to rise to 25% by 2021. This article will give a brief overview of Thailand’s audacious 10-year AEDP and introduce selected advanced production technologies necessary for nonfood biofuels, especially cellulosic bioethanol. Since accelerated development of these advanced technologies will present a grand challenge to Thailand, the author would like to propose an effective win-win development strategy for biofuel R&D through the establishment of an international open innovation center (IOIRC) in biomass in Thailand.