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Published on December 23, 2007

Dr Kopr Kritaya-kirana, a senior adviser at the National Science and Technology Development Agency, is busy these days helping to prepare Thailand for the age of nuclear energy.

As head of a government committee laying the groundwork for policy decisions on this crucial issue, Kopr, who holds a PhD in physics from Harvard University, says Thailand will have to decide whether or not it will go nuclear in the next three years.

"I was asked by science minister Dr Yongyuth Yuthavong earlier this year to work for this committee, as the energy and science ministries had been working together on this energy option.

"A nuclear-power plant project generally has a very long lead time if we do want to turn to this option. If we said 'yes' today, it means the plant would not be operational until 2020 or about 13 years from now," says Kopr, a former lecturer at Chulalongkorn University.

Recently, the Surayud government approved a budget of Bt1.8 billion for the committee to prepare the country for nuclear energy over the next three years.

In Kopr's opinion, a nuclear option for energy is wise for Thailand as it would boost the country's energy security in the coming decades.

"At present, 68 per cent of our natural-gas supply comes from the Gulf of Thailand. This indigenous source of energy will run out in the next 30 years so we need to diversify our supply sources.

"Secondly, the electricity charges have been constantly rising (due to higher prices of fuels used to generate electricity). In the long run, electricity generated by a nuclear-power plant would be cheaper and more stable.

"Thirdly, I think our indigenous natural gas should be used as a feedstock in the petrochemical industry rather than for power generation. In that case, the gas will have more value added.

"Fourth, the global-warming phenomenon has made nuclear energy even more attractive because it has no CO2 emission, a cause for climate change.

"Fifth, it's likely that countries may have to pay CO2 emission charges in the future to address the issue of climate change," Kopr continues. Previous attempts to launch a nuclear-energy initiative in Thailand were unsuccessful partly due to the discovery of sizeable natural-gas supplies in the Gulf of Thailand in the past two-to-three decades.

Kopr said a comprehensive understanding of nuclear energy was a prerequisite for the general public to accept this energy option since the term "nuclear" often conjures up images of nuclear weapons and wars.

"Besides public acceptance, we need to prepare many things, such as infrastructure, regulations, manpower, safety and environmental measures before we can go ahead with nuclear energy," Kopr said.

"A nuclear power plant also requires a long-term commitment and a big public investment as a plant costs US$1-$2 (Bt33.7-Bt67.4) per watt to build. A 1,000 megawatt plant will cost over $1 billion.

"The proposed capacity is 4,000 megawatts, but the overall cost will be significantly less if the capacity is that large.

"In terms of safety, we'll be subject to the International Atomic Energy Agency's strict regulations and guidelines on safety, security and safeguards.

"Essentially, a nuclear-power plant uses uranium 235 and 238 to generate heat and then electricity so there is nothing to do with a nuclear weapon or warhead.

"The Chernobyl catastrophe in the former Soviet Union scared many people, but that should be seen within the context of military experiments that went wrong, rather than as a commercial nuclear reactor.

"As of today, there are 348 nuclear reactors and power plants around the world and the updated information shows that there is a global resurgence of nuclear energy due to climate change and the unrelenting rise of oil prices.

"As for other renewable and alternative energy sources, such as wind and solar, the supply side is still limited whereas demand continues to rise in accordance with the country's economic growth.

"More importantly, petroleum sources could dry up in the next 30 to 50 years so we need to prepare to use other alternative energy sources," says Kopr.

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

nop1122@yahoo.com