The National Reform Council (NRC) yesterday approved in principal a national scheme to independently install solar cells on household rooftops, but it acknowledged that it might benefit the importers of the solar materials and operators rather than household users.
During a five-hour debate yesterday, the NRC noted that a per-household cost of between Bt120,000 and Bt160,000 might be too expensive for homeowners - a setback that might render the scheme less cost-effective for homeowners than it was intended to be.
The NRC approved the proposal by 206 votes to 15, with seven abstaining. The plan had been submitted by the NRC commission on energy reform and was in line with the so-called Power Development Plan. The panel had been instructed to author a report on the PDP and investigate how the solar rooftop project could benefit homeowners in the long run.
The Energy Ministry will oversee the solar rooftop project jointly with the Energy Regulatory Commission, the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the Provincial Electricity Authority, and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. The regulations and criteria for the scheme will have to be worked out, and applicants will be able to apply for it through a one-stop service.
The scheme would also need to designate a rate fairest to the homeowners, who would sell the leftover electricity to the authorities through the so-called Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the NRC said.
