PTTEP looks to a more sustainable future

CEO Montri Rawanchaikul understands the economic necessity for secure sources of energy, but vows that the firm will always keep the environment in mind

Chief executive Montri Rawanchaikul believes one key mission for PTT Exploration and Production Plc. (PTTEP) is to devise ways to reduce the impact of its businesses on the environment, particularly by reducing the company's carbon dioxide emissions.

Mr. Montri said he is aware the company needs to continue to secure enough fuel to support the Thai economy, but this effort should not ignore the cost to the environment.

As someone who sets policies and strategic plans for PTTEP, Mr. Montri has helped the company promote projects to cut carbon dioxide emissions, seek new alternative energies and pave the way to operate in a more sustainable manner.

One such project is developing Thailand's first carbon capture and storage (CCS) facility at the Arthit gas field in the Gulf of Thailand, one of several efforts aimed at helping the government curb carbon dioxide emissions in the country.

The CCS project fits with the company's campaign against global warming and the environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) principles, which promote business development and taking better care of the environment and society, said Mr. Montri.

ESG refers to a set of standards that are said to be able to lead to business sustainability.

“We expect the CCS project to store up to 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide during gas production at the Arthit within 2027," said Mr. Montri.

The company has already completed the preliminary-front-end engineering and design phase of the project. It expects the CCS facility to start operating by 2027.

The Gulf of Thailand offers great potential to store carbon dioxide amounting to roughly 40 million tonnes a year because geographically the terrain is a sink area, which is suitable for the storage of carbon dioxide.

PTTEP is also cooperating with five companies from France and South Korea to produce green hydrogen in Oman, said Mr. Montri.

Green hydrogen, which is used to fuel power generation and manufacturing processes, is produced by using electricity made from renewable energy to split water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen.

This project shows the company is not solely focused on the exploration and production of petroleum, as it is also seeking new opportunities to develop future energy.

Under a contract made with Hydrom Oman SPC, which operates under the government of Oman, PTTEP and its partners were awarded a 47-year concession to produce green hydrogen at Block Z1-02 in Dugm in eastern Oman.

The production facility, to be run by 5-gigawatt solar and wind power, is expected to open in 2030, with an estimated 220,000 tonnes of hydrogen produced annually.

These two projects indicate PTTEP is focusing more on the environmental aspects of its businesses, which will in turn partly help the government to successfully run a campaign to combat global warming.

At the 26th UN Climate Change Conference held in Glasgow in 2021, Thailand announced it is determined to achieve carbon neutrality, a balance between carbon dioxide emissions and absorption, by 2050, along with a net-zero target, a balance between greenhouse gas emissions and absorption, by 2065.

PTTEP also has its own plan under EP Net-Zero 2050 concept, which aims to achieve a net-zero target by 2050.

“The CCS and green hydrogen projects will support PTTEP's environmental efforts, driving Thailand and the world at large towards a low-carbon society," said Mr. Montri.

Greater care for the environment will be a crucial part of PTTEP's work in the future.

"The company will go on expanding its investment in natural gas production, but at the same time it will also incorporate the greenhouse gas emission issue in the decision-making process of new gas projects," said Mr. Montri.

National energy security is important to fuel the growth of the country's economy, but its development must be sustainable, which will be achieved through better environmental management, he said.