The Thai Exporters Association is preparing to deal with the European Union’s (EU) Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which is a measure to collect carbon tax from imported goods with high greenhouse gas emissions. The goal is to prevent carbon leakage and create competitive equality between producers inside and outside the EU. The transitional phase began from October 2023 to December 2025, before being fully implemented in 2026. This affects Thailand’s exports, especially iron, steel, and aluminum products, which are at high risk of carbon leakage. In 2022, these exports were valued at $479.02 million USD, accounting for 2.12% of Thailand’s total export value to the EU and 5.47% of Thailand’s export value of these products to the global market. The CBAM will increase costs for Thai exporters if they do not adapt.

        Government and private sectors were collaborating to encourage entrepreneurs to create Carbon Footprint of Product (CFP) labels in preparation for Thailand’s transition period. This involved calculating greenhouse gas emissions throughout the supply chain, which can be used to effectively plan greenhouse gas emission reductions. TGO served as the certification agency for CFP.

        Additionally, Thailand Aluminium Club had implemented the development of environmental information database of aluminium industries of Thaialnd to prepare for CBAM measure. This project included 11 member companies under the collaboration between FTI and NSTDA. This database will establish average greenhouse gas emission values to be reported according to CBAM enforcement, which can also be extened to improve overall manufacturing effciency.

        Carbon credit represents the quantity of greenhouse gases that can be reduced, recaptured, or absorbed through greenhouse gas emission reduction projects. Carbon credit can be exchanged or traded after receiving certification according to established standards. An example of carbon credit trading implemenation was through the Thailand Voluntary Emission Reduction Program (T-VER), which operates as an over-the-counter (OTC) market where buyers and sellers negotiate directly. Interested participants must first register an account with the TGO in order to be able to offset GHG emission under T-VER program.

        In 2023, a total of 27 solar power plant projects were registered under the T-VER program, as shown in Table 3.10. These projects had the potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emission reductions by 104,668 tCO2e/year.

        FTI, in collaboration with the TGO had developed the FTIX platform (FTI:CC/RE/REC X Platform) to facilitate trading of carbon credit, as well as renewable eletricity through RECs.

        In 2023, FTix operated carbon trading equivalent to 11.9 kTCO2e, in which 97.5% was from biomass energy and 2.5% from solar energy.

        Additionally, those who desire to trade carbon credit can also register with other international platforms such as CBL Xpansiv, Air Carbon Exchange, and Carbon Trade Exchange in order to be able to trade their carbon credit under other scope and standards.

        Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) is used to certify electricity production from renewable energy, with 1 REC equivalent to 1 MWh of electricity. EGAT served as the certification provider for power plants in Thailand (Thailand Local Issuer) according to the standards of The International REC Standard Foundation (I-REC Standard). By 2023, EGAT had registered 450 power plant projects in Thailand under the I-REC standard, with a total production capacity of approximately 5.55 GW. There were 310 solar power generation projects with a combined production capacity of over 2.02 GW. EGAT aimed to become a regional issuer of I-REC standard certification in the future.

        In 2023, EGAT certified solar power generation of more than 1.86 million RECs, ranking third after biomass power generation and hydropower, with wind power ranking fourth. This represented approximately 20% of all renewable energy production certifications. Additionally, there were requests to purchase solar power generation certificates totaling more than 1.19 million RECs, accounting for approximately 24% of all requests to purchase electricity from renewable energy sources.

       The government recognized and acknowledged the importance of managing wastes from solar cells or solar panels. Due to increased installation of solar power system during the past years in Thailand, waste management and recycling of solar cell related residues were required to be addressed properly. In 2022, the Pollution Control Department had developed a draft Integrated Action Plan for the Management of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (2022-2026) and a draft Act on the Management of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment. These legislation had emphasized proper collection, sorting, disassembly, and disposal of waste products according to academic principles. For example, it prohibits the disposal or eradication of waste products in public areas and provides guidelines for establishing product return centers. As of 2023, this draft act was undergoing the public hearing process.

        Additionally, several agencies had conducted studies and pilot projects on the management of used solar panels. These included the development of a prototype processes for managing solar panels in Thailand by the National Energy Technology Center (ENTEC) of NSTDA, and the comprehensive solar panel recycling technology development project by the DPIM (Figure 3.11).