Restructuring the electricity industry in emerging countries
Podcast with Thanawadee Jaem On and Nicha Saiped
During the Executive Course to master Electricity Markets, the FSR Lights on Women team organised an interview with Thanawadee Jaem On and Nicha Saiped. They provided an interesting perspective on the current situation of the Thai electricity industry as well as their experience working as women in the Thai energy sector.
There is no single way to organise the electricity industry at the world level. In the EU the industry is liberalised and the competitive segments are unbundled from those related to the management and planning of the grid. On the contrary, in countries such as Thailand one or few vertically integrated companies are responsible for the whole supply chain, i.e. from the generation to the transmission and distribution of electricity.
Thanawadee Jaem On and Nicha Saiped, two engineers employed by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), discussed the current situation of the Thai electricity industry with Nicolò Rossetto (FSR).
During the exchange, it came out that EGAT is facing challenges similar to those that utilities and regulators in Europe are trying to cope with (decentralisation of power production, development of prosumers, digitalisation).
The similarities did not end there. Thanawadee Jaem On and Nicha Saiped also touched on the emergence of women working in the energy sector in Thailand, where, like Europe, the sector is traditionally populated by men.
With a positive outlook, they stressed that “women have the power.”
In Europe and around the world, women’s contributions to the energy sector continue to grow and their areas of expertise are becoming increasingly diverse. Here at the FSR, we are delighted to follow their journeys and more importantly to make these contributions and their expertise visible to the energy policy community.
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