Public and private sector participation in the 3rd workshop on moving fuel economy policy forward in Thailand

The Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP), Thailand and the ASEAN-German technical cooperation Transport and Climate Change Project (TCC) have closely worked together on moving forward a fuel economy policy in Thailand, co-organising two workshops on the subject last year. The results included an initial analysis of the average fuel consumption of new passenger light duty vehicles and motorcycles as well as a gap analysis of the fuel efficiency policy. Both results are important first steps for fuel economy improvement in Thailand.

Following on from the two previous workshops in March and November in 2016, “The 3^rd workshop on move forward fuel economy policy in Thailand” was held on August 10^th, 2017 at OTP in Bangkok in order to share initial findings and recommendations and identify the scope of work in the next stages of the study.

The workshop started with overviews of the TCC study on FE policies in the land transport sector in Thailand. The study shows that the weighted average fuel economy of passenger light duty vehicles (PLDV) worsened from 6.98 litres of gasoline equivalent per 100 kilometres (6.98 lge/100km) in 2012 to 7.08 litres in 2014. However, the study suggests possible paths towards FE improvement in Thailand, including a revision of the CO₂-based excise tax and improvement of the ECO sticker.

Tri Petch Isuzu Sales Co., Ltd. and BMW (Thailand) Co., Ltd. were invited to share the private sector experience and potential for FE improvement. They presented fuel efficiency improvements through engine size optimisation and fuel efficiency improvement by hybridisation, respectively. Both companies support energy efficiency in vehicles. The workshop wrapped with discussions and exchanges of experience on the application of fuel efficiency policy opportunities in contributing towards fuel efficiency improvement in Thailand.

This workshop brought together related stakeholders to seek cooperation on the development/implementation of fuel economy and efficiency policies in Thailand. With participants from both the public sectors and the private sectors, the path was laid for good cooperation among stakeholders in pushing advance FE policies/measures towards actual implementation.

As a next step, TCC will hold bilateral discussions to gather more information on the development of cost-benefit analysis and policy recommendations for more energy efficient vehicles, benefiting Thai consumers, the government, industry, and the environment.

“We are trying to improve technologies in vehicle and user behaviour to pursue fuel efficiency in Thailand.” – Tri Petch Isuzu Sales Co., Ltd.