Clean energy, digital tech will fuel economic recovery: energy minister
Developments in green energy and digital technologies will play a crucial role in Thailand’s economic recovery, Energy Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow said on Thursday.
He was speaking at a Thai News Network seminar titled “Recovery and Moving on of Thai Economics – the Great Reset”.
Supattanapong said the economy was gradually improving after being hit by recession because of three years of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been aggravated by the war in Ukraine.
The pandemic and the conflict have led to increasing food and energy prices, resulting in rising inflation, but the Thai economy was now on the path to recovery, he said, citing the number of non-performing loans in banks that have "dropped from some 12-14 million to just 3 million".
Supattanapong said revenue figures were also improving along with other economic indicators.
According to him, international agencies have given Thailand a credit rating that is the same as before the Covid pandemic, while Thai banks are still enjoying stability.
“So, I would like to assure the people that the situation is improving and the government will handle the remaining issues of the crisis,” the energy minister promised.
He said the economic situation might not go back to pre-Covid levels soon, but Thailand’s situation was at least much better than those of neighbouring countries.
Supattanapong also said Thailand had been developing green energy technologies after General Prayut Chan-o-cha announced at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference that Thailand would become carbon neutral – a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon from the atmosphere – by 2050.
With Prayut’s commitment, Supattnapong said, Thailand became the only Asean nation that started working toward the carbon-neutrality goal.
According to the minister, Thailand has become the only Asean country to promote the use of battery electric vehicles (BEVs), so manufacturers could use Thailand as a hub for making BEVs.
“We are not helping importers of BEVs, as several critics claim. The importers must build factories to manufacture BEVs to be eligible for government subsidies, Supattanapong made it clear.
He said the programme would ensure that at least five brands manufacture BEVs in Thailand.
This could lead to development of digital technologies and would create new types of SMEs, he said hopefully.
There would also be investments and developments of other technologies related to carbon neutrality, including the goal to turn Thailand into a hub for making hydrogen energy, Supattanapong said.
Thais have also become a digital society by using various apps, such as Krung Thai Bank’s Paotang app to buy digital lottery, he pointed out.
Furthermore, new SMEs based on digital platforms will be created, the energy minister said, adding that leading foreign investors are now interested in investments in cloud computing services, cloud servers, artificial intelligence, and data centres.
He said foreign investors, who are keen to invest in these digital technologies, will soon apply to the Board of Investment for tax incentives.
The country also possesses logistics infrastructure ready to serve investors, and many want to transfer their manufacturing bases to Thailand in a move to use the kingdom as a gateway for their products, Supattanapong said.
He cited the figure of 900 billion baht of investments in the Eastern Economic Corridor as proof, saying foreign investors have taken note of Thailand as a country ripe for investment under a Bio-Circular Green Economy.
“The government has been doing its best and I would like the public to have confidence that even when we are in crisis, success can be achieved with cooperation from all,” Supattanapong concluded.
