PSU’s Pattani Campus has installed solar cells as an alternative energy source, and uses smart meters; steps taken towards sustainable development to reduce energy consumption and pollution, while becoming more environmentally friendly in accordance with the Green Campus policy.
Asst. Prof. Dr. Attachai Ueranantasun, Vice President for Information Systems and Planning, Pattani Campus, said that the 300-acre campus with its 10,000 people poses a large drain on resources, especially electricity that costs about 3,500,000 baht per month, or 42 million baht per year. To answer this challenge, the campus turned to renewable energy since 2019 by installing an 800-kilowatt, 2,500-panel solar power generation system on campus. The endeavor was supported by the Energy Conservation Promotion Fund, Energy Policy and Planning Office, Ministry of Energy. The setup features a lithium-ion electric power storage battery system with 50 kilowatts of power, and a maximum output of 500 kilowatts per hour.
An additional energy storage system was made available for the primary health care center at the Faculty of Nursing, Pattani Campus, in order to ensure continuous service. The solar power system is installed on the rooftop of the buildings on campus. According to data by the Provincial Electricity Authority, these measures have reduced electricity costs by about seven hundred thousand baht per month or eight million and four hundred thousand baht per year.
Dr. Attachai added that Pattani Campus also installed a Smart Energy Meter system with a digital meter connected to the network, and created a Smart Monitor system so that electric users can view electrical data real-time. The smart meter system is installed in various buildings to track and evaluate electricity consumption, and the system can display the result of the electric energy usage every 15 minutes. This strategy increases awareness of electricity consumption at the university.
