Smart grids on cards in PEA 4.0 drive
Pilot projects planned for five major cities
The Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) plans to spend 2 billion baht to implement pilot smart-grid projects in five cities in 2017 as part of its efforts to drive Thailand 4.0 and smart city initiatives.
The five are Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Nakhon Ratchasima and Hat Yai.
A smart grid is an electrical grid that includes a variety of operational and energy features including smart metres and appliances, renewable energy resources and energy efficient resources.
“We are embracing ICT — including Internet of Things, cloud computing and data analytics — to transform ourselves into PEA 4.0,” said PEA governor Sermsuk Klaikaew.
Smart meters will be a key element in building energy management systems that allow users to monitor their energy usage in real time.
Mr Sermsuk said implementation of the smart grid projects are expected to be completed within two years, starting with Pattaya in the next three months.
He said the PEA’s 20-year smart grid project for 2015-35 will initially require a total investment of over 10 billion baht.
The PEA has built a connected home model using the latest smarthome technology to showcase energy-saving homes, which would allow homeowners to sell surplus electricity back to the authority.
The PEA, in collaboration with Messe Frankfurt, a Germany-based event organiser, have joined forces with The Exhibiz to organise “Thailand Lighting Fair 2017” from Nov 16-18.
The fair at Bitec will showcase the latest technology for lighting, energy management and safety for smart homes, as well as intelligent buildings and smart cities under the Smart City Safety concept. The exhibition is expected to gather technology suppliers from around the globe with 700 exhibition booths and 15,000 visitors from 40 countries.
Passakon Prathombutr, senior programme director of the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), part of the Science and Technology Ministry, said the agency is also developing image processing and sensing systems for the smart city project.
The NSTDA said it would submit a plan soon for the development of smart cities in the Eastern Economic Corridor to the Digital Economy and Society Ministry.