Mekong Safeguards

In this project, SEI is working with Thailand’s Ministry of Energy and national electric utility to conduct integrated resource and resilience planning (IRRP) for the Thai power system.

The IRRP exercise has a long-range timeline and is identifying strategies to attain carbon neutrality in the system by mid-century. Together with the Thai counterparts, SEI developed a detailed model of Thailand’s power system with LEAP and NEMO, including electricity demand, generation, storage, and efficiency in each of the country’s subnational electric grids. Transmission connectivity and power flow among the grids are explicitly modelled with NEMO, allowing co-optimization of generation, storage, and transmission options.

The introduction of co-optimization capabilities is a significant advance for the Ministry, which previously analyzed generation and transmission separately. The IRRP modelling accounts for a wide range of social and environmental objectives and critical future uncertainties that may affect planning decisions, such as climate change, pandemics, and technological uncertainty.

Results from the analysis inform the national Power Development Plan (PDP) and National Energy Strategy, both of which must align with Thailand’s carbon neutrality goals.