Prof. Ram Shrestha authors two premier RERIC publications on Climate and Energy

Tuesday 05 April 2016 15:50
Emeritus Professor Ram M. Shrestha has brought out two premier publications under the banner of the Regional Energy Resources Information Center (RERIC) of the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT). Titled "Climate Policy and Energy Development in Thailand: An Assessment," and "Power Sector Development with Carbon and Energy Taxes: An Assessment in Six Asian Countries," these two publications contain significant policy recommendations that have a bearing on both climate and energy sectors in the region.

Prof. Shrestha, who has spearheaded research work that led to these publications, remarked: "Each books represents a decade's worth of work done at AIT."

The book on "Climate Policy and Energy Development in Thailand", which is authored by Prof. Shrestha along with two AIT researchers Sunil Malla and Migara H Liyanage, employs advanced quantitative modelling tools for energy systems and climate policy modelling. The book acquires an increased significance in light of the recent climate change agreement in Paris, where countries submitted their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to reduce emission of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). While climate and energy policies are closely related, in many situations, energy policies are introduced with purely national considerations like economic growth, energy security and local and regional environmental quality. However, sustainable energy policies can contribute to both GHG emission mitigation and attainment of national policy objectives.

The 230-page publication covers a wide variety of topics including the socioeconomic, energy and environmental emission trends in Thailand, Thailand Asia Pacific Integrated Model (AIM) Enduse Model, Energy development and environmental implications in the business-as-usual scenario, scenario-based analyses of energy system development and its environmental implications in Thailand, multi-gas emissions in Thailand, implications of post-Kyoto carbon dioxide emission reduction targets on energy and environment in Thailand, energy and environmental implications of using biofuels in Thailand's road transport, co-benefits of carbon dioxide reduction in a developing country, and Thailand's low-carbon scenario 2050.

The second book on "Power Sector Development with Carbon and Energy Taxes" presents country-specific analysis of the effects of carbon and energy taxes on the power sector in China, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. Each country study analyzes the implications of carbon and energy taxes on technology options, energy resources mix, and investment requirements from a long-term planning perspective. The 252-page book also assesses the impact of taxes on carbon emissions and local and regional pollutants from the power sector. "The quantitative insights on the effects of carbon and energy taxes on power sector development will be useful to policy makers and researchers," Prof. Shrestha added.

A part of the research included in this volume was conducted under the Asian Regional Research Programme in Energy, Environment and Climate (ARRPEEC) funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and was coordinated by AIT.

Both publications have been brought out by RERIC, AIT

Details of both publications can be found at these links:

http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/2016/news/reric1.pdf

http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/2016/news/reric2.pdf

Publications by AIT authors can be found at BookShelf: http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/bookshelf