Between 1980 – late 2009, there was an installation of solar cell system with the
accumulated capacity of 40 WMp in Thailand. Nearly 70% of this capacity is off-grid systems,
almost all of which were installed with government budget. A rapid expansion of solar
technology was brought about by a project to provide electricity with Solar Home Systems
(SHS) for households in remote areas not connected to electricity grid. The country’s overall
solar capacity was increased over 26 WMp. The project also contributed to the expansion
of solar cell market in Thailand. However, there was a lack of clear policy in terms of shortterm
and long-term action plans. There was also a lack of continuity of government support.
As a result, the solar cell market in Thailand has not yet grown large enough, with only
11-WMp grid-connected systems (this includes rooftop installation and solar farms). Moreover,
in 2007, the Ministry of Energy announced the 15-year Alternative Energy Development Plan
(2008-2022) plus the measures to set up “A dder”and revise rules and regulations on power
purchase of the Electricity distributors, and the measures on investment promotions and
incentives of the Thailand Board of Investment, this has led to a considerable increase
in the number of request for solar farm construction (with an expression of intent to
sell electricity of around 2,341 MWp as of March 2010, which is higher than the 15-year Plan
target of 500 MWp).
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The consideration and analysis of solar cell technology can be divided into 2 parts,
namely solar cell technology and the solar cell system technology.