Energy tax breaks mulled
The Nation, 24 June, 2004
Watcharapong Thongrung
The government is considering exempting energy-conscious factories from corporate income tax.
The move would be an incentive for factories that follow the government's energy-saving campaign, Energy Minister Prommin Lertsuridej said yesterday.
He said the government might exempt energy-conscious factories from corporate income tax for a couple of years and provide low-interest loans to encourage factories to shift from tanker oil diesel to natural gas.
Speaking at an energy-saving seminar by the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), Prommin said the government was studying ways to provide incentives to ensure factories repay low-interest loans.
He said an energy institution set up by the FTI had sought a Bt191-million budget from the government's energy-saving fund to help industries save on fuel consumption by educating them on alternative sources such as solar energy.
FTI president Praphat Bhothiwarakul said the government and the private sector should work closely to reduce energy consumption.
In 2002, Thailand spent Bt411.19 billion on energy imports.
Eighty-five per cent of the total - or BT346 billion - came from crude-oil imports while 10 per cent, or Bt42.6 billion, came from crude-oil imports.
The industrial sector is the most active energy-consumption sector, accounting for 36 per cent of the total.
Prida Wibulswas, a senior energy-technology academic, said the government's energy-saving campaign had not been fully effective because the administration had failed to clearly identify its target.
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