สำนักงานราชบัณฑิตยสภา

ศักยภาพการผลิตไฟฟ้าจากพลังงานลมของประเทศไทย 42 The Journal of the Royal Society of Thailand Volume 40 Number 1 January-March 2015 Abstract Wind Energy Situation in Thailand Somchai Wongwises Associate Fellow of the Academy of Science, The Royal Society, Thailand Fluid Mechanics, Thermal Engineering and Multiphase Flow Research Laboratory (FUTURE) Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangmod, Bangkok 10140, Thailand Sakkarin Chingulpitak Fluid Mechanics, Thermal Engineering and Multiphase Flow Research Laboratory (FUTURE) Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangmod, Bangkok 10140, Thailand Due to fuel price volatility and global warming, several countries are now more interested in studying and developing sources of alternative energy, particularly renewable energy. An interesting alternative energy source is wind energy which has an unlimited and environmentally friendly source of natural energy. Therefore, wind energy has attracted increasing levels of investment every year. At the end of 2013, Thailand generated approximately 193 MW of electricity from wind energy. Moreover, the Thai government’s plan is to achieve 1,200 MW of electricity generated from wind energy and to increase the use of alternative electric energy to about 10% of fossil fuel use. The purpose of this article is to present a critical review of the current status of wind energy in Thailand, including future plans for promoting the use of wind energy to generate electricity in place of fossil fuels-oil, natural gas, and coal. Keywords : wind energy, wind energy potential, wind farm, renewable energy