Phuket told to conserve power ahead of energy shortage

PHUKET: The Energy Ministry alerted all residents on Phuket to conserve power to prevent outages from July 21 to July 25, as a major gas field supply line in the Gulf of Thailand will be upgraded during this period.

Director-General of the Energy Policy and Planning Office Chavalit Pichalai revealed that the country will be losing around 420 million standard cubic feet of gas a day when the Thailand-Malaysia Joint Development Area (JDA-A 18) will be closed for maintenance.

“Chana Power Plant Number 2, which is located in Songkla, will stop working because it will run out of fuel.

“We have changed the fuel for power plant number one in Songkla to diesel. We have to make sure that the power line is in good order during the maintenance,” he said.

Phanumas Limsuwan, director of maintenance and operation section of the Provincial Electricity Authority Area 2 (South) Nakhon Si Thammarat, said that the power agency will have only about 2,828 megawatts a day, but expects this to be enough for the southern region’s needs.

“Most power is used from 6:30pm to 10:30pm. On average, the consumption during this period is about 2,350 megawatts,” Mr Phanumas said.

“To assist people, the PEA has set up a help center for updates about power outages. If people have any issues about power supply, they can call 1129 at anytime of the day.”

Phuket Vice Governor Punlop Singhasenee said that he is confident the maintenance will not affect southern people’s businesses or daily life.

“However, we would like people to reduce power usage during peak periods. We would also like people to continue doing so even after the maintenance has been completed to save energy for the next generation,” Vice Governor Punlop said.

The Energy Ministry’s Deputy Permanent Secretary Twarath Sutabutr thanked everyone for their preparation.

“We have told our team to advise and assist Phuket government officials, and would like to thank all concerned parties for helping reduce power consumption,” Mr Twarath said.

“We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.”

— Woranut Pechdee