Global Power Synergy Public Company Limited (GPSC) operates under sustainability management policies and social environmental responsibility policies through various forms of social and community development projects that are in line with the business strategy and direction of the organization. The company also focuses on engaging with all groups of stakeholders, both inside and outside the organization, especially those around the operating area of the company for sustainable coexistence.
Management Guidelines For Sustainable Coexistence With Communities
GRI 103-2, 413-1
Strategic Framework on Corporate Social Responsibility
GPSC realizes the importance of having responsibility towards society and the environment, as it believes that for the business to develop sustainably, the community and society must grow together. Therefore, GPSC establishes a community engagement process in all areas of operation (100 percent) to listen to concerns, interests in order to develop and improve operations in the area and coexist with the community sustainably. The corporate social responsibility strategy framework that the company uses is in line with international standards, such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as combining these with its business expertise into the process of developing and solving crucial issues of communities and society overall.
Strategies for creating CSR activities of GPSC are based on 3 important principles, namely:
Must be an activity that is linked to the corporate mission and involves business operations.
Relates to the use of expertise, skills, and core competencies of the organization to pass on knowledge and to further develop communities.
Must take into account the needs and expectations of stakeholders, especially those around GPSC's business operation areas.
GPSC regularly supports and participates in various social contribution activities as well as cultural and religious activities organized by the community. In addition, GPSC regularly organizes public participation activities with people in neighborhoods to improve understanding of our business operation in order to build relationships with communities in various forms, including the Side-by-Side Project, tripartite committee meeting, EIA Monitoring committee meeting, community visit, open house activity and public hearing. The opinions and suggestions obtained from these participation processes are important information that GPSC has adopted to develop our CSR strategies on CSR activities that meet the expectations of community and society for a clear and sustainable business operation. Moreover, GPSC has monitored also follow up the outcome results and benefits of occurred from CSR activities to make sure that it is alignedwith the designated strategies.
CSR activities that GPSC focuses on and formulates into a CSR strategy famework are divided into 4 areas as follows:
Power Accessibility
Quality of life
Natural Resources and Environment
Sustainable Innovation
Power Accessibility
GPSC aims to increase the share of renewable energy which is clean energy by developing energy infrastructure and services, especially in remote areas, so that people can have equal access to electricity, thus being able to carry out economic activities and have better well-being. GPSC, as the innovation leader in the PTT Group's electricity business, determined to bring skills, knowledge, capability, and expertise into the development of the electrical systems to deliver clean energy to the community. This is in line with the global energy trend and Thailand's National Energy Plan, which aims to promote clean energy and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to zero (Net Zero) by 2065.
Light for a Better Life (LBL) project aims to support local community in maintaining electrical systems, using skills, specialty, and employees of GPSC to reflect our identity as an innovative power flagship of PTT group. The company has leveraged employee expertise to help people in the community, society, and nation (People of the Planet) in four main aspects: Safety, Saving, Security, and Socio-Economic.
Safety
Improving and repairing electrical systems of public places, such as local schools, temples and medical clinics, etc. to reduce risk to life and property damage from fires and electric shocks as well as repairing and restoring electrical systems of local government offices in case of disasters.
Saving
Modifying electrical equipment and appliances to save energy as well as installing solar power systems to save costs and use the saved money for development activities or other useful activities of the beneficiaries.
Security
Installation of alternative energy system in remote areas so that people in the community and greater society will have a better quality of life and less obstacles in life as well as energy security through such activity as installing solar rooftop systems for hospitals, health care facilities and educational institutions in remote areas, etc.
Socio-economic
Creating and promoting electrician jobs ("Moh Fai Fa") for people in communities by training people to improve professional skills, aiding individuals in the process of becoming an electrician, as well as helping them to take care of their own households and communities, along with generating additional income or continuing to use such skills for their main income.
The LBL project is a strategically important corporate social responsibility project because it corresponds to the business and expertise of the organization, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the global energy trend. GPSC has maintained electricity systems, install and deliver solar power and energy storage systems, especially in remote areas and communities where electricity has not been reached. We have implemented more than 20 LBL projects in eight provinces to create stability and equality in energy access. In 2021, GPSC has improved electrical system for two schools in its business area and implemented three more solar projects in other areas as follow:
No.
Project / Installation Site
Type
kWp
CO2 Reduction volume
Remarks
1
Sa Kaeo College of Agriculture and Technology (Sa Kaeo)
On-grid
30
46,743.61
2
Eight Community Health Service Centers (Om Koi District,Chiang Mai)
Off-grid
24.29*
24,071.97
in collaboration with the Power For Sustainable Future Foundation
3
Smart Farming Project (Khao Chamao District, Rayong and Bo Kluea District, Nan
Off-grid
4
6,289.13
in collaboration with PTT
Total
58.29
77,104.71
*Based on budget contribution
As a result, the installed capacity of LBL project has increased from 181.98 kWp in 2020 to 240.27 kWp in 2021. Our goal is to have community access to renewable energy of 1,000 kWp by 2026. The three LBL projects above can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a total of 77,104.71 KgCO2e per year.
120 hours that employees voluntarily engaged in the project
75 kWp installed capacity
Community satisfaction score at 75%
Zero complaints
Value to the community, society and the environment of LBL project
Installing off-grid solar system for eight health care climics in remote areas that can generate electricity 46,855 kWh per year on average with CO2 reduction 24,071.97 KgCO2e
Income (from electricity cost saving) from solar system installation of Sa Kaeo College of Agriculture and Technology is 252,000 THB.
The average amount of generated electricity is 10,000 kilowatt-hours per year.
Reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 171,159 KgCO2e per year
Income of students participated in electrical system improvement at two area-based schools is 126,000 THB.
Electricity costs saved from the replacement of electrical equipment at the two schools in our business area is 10,257 THB per year
Social Return on Investment (SROI)
Electrical system improvement at Map Toei School = 2.55
Electrical system improvement at Wat Krachad School = 2.62
Solar system installation at Sa Kaeo College of Agriculture and Technology = 2.32
Solar system installation at 8 Community Health Service Centers (CHS) in Omkoi District (average of 8 locations) = 5.14
Outcome or Social Benefits of LBL project
Quality of life aspects
Community members have a greater peace of mind because they can now access to the public health services.
Personnel of the Community Health Service Center possess a greater sense of safety and security in their lives and personal assets.
Personnel of the Community Health Service Center have more time to spend with their families due to the reduction of their overtime work hours.
Economic aspects
Community members lost less income and opportunities due to less traveling to Omkoi Hospital.
The District Public Health Office has saved costs on medical supplies, transportation, backup generators, and unnecessary overtime works of their personnel.
The District Public Health Office can reduce costs of treatment for critically ill patients.
Environmental aspects
The Community Health Service Center reduced greenhouse gas emissions from the use of clean energy.
Community members and the District Public Health Office reduced their greenhouse gas emissions from commuting and traveling. For example, members of the community commuted less to and from Omkoi District Hospital, while the District Public Health Office reduced transportation of vaccine and critical patients due to the fact that all the eight Community Health Service Centers now have 24-hour power supply.
คลิปบ้านแม่หลองหลวง
Mannai project video clip
Quality of life
GPSC has established policies to improve the quality of life of people in the community and society for a better standard of living and safety from various hazards and to promote job creation, income generating activities and well-being, as well as strong physical and mental health through various activities. Those activities include the "GPSC United to Help the Nation" project that has supported people affected from the COVID-19 situation, potential development activities for village health volunteers, mobile medical unit activities, youth development and sports promotion activities, Senior Social Club, Smart Farming Project, community enterprise for waste banks and waste processing activities, etc.
Due to the epidemic situation of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has been spread since 2020, GPSC has to adjust its social, community and environmental action plans in 2021 in response to the COVID-19 situation.
GPSC has started the "GPSC United to Help the Nation" project since November 2019 until now. We are currently in the 4th phase of the outbreak and our main assistance activities can be divided into 4 main forms:
Donating money to support COVID-19 patients
Donating medical equipment and necessities
Supporting innovations to help alleviate the spread of COVID-19
Implementation of rehabilitation projects or activities to support the affected people
The total budget spent in the "GPSC Unite to Help the Nation" Project was 38.78 MTHB.
Due to the situation of the COVID-19 epidemic that affects the economy and society, GPSC together with PTT Group has initiated Smart Farming project under the "Innovation for Society" project of PTT Group. The objectives of the project are as follow:
Bring innovation and technology of GPSC and PTT Group to improve quality of life and enhance the cultivation process and agricultural product development
Develop a modern agricultural business by applying technology, innovation and holistic management
Focus on development using community energy and expertise of GPSC and PTT Group
Increase revenue from improved production capacity, reduced expenses and reduced working time and increase the productivity of the community through modern agriculture so that farmers will have a sustainable and self-reliant living.
Target groups of the Smart Farming project consist of farmers, community enterprises, and the disadvantaged. Task force structure consists of an area manager who is an employee of PTT Group's subsidiary and six employees (per area) from the RESTART Thailand project. PTT Group has recruited newly graduates, most of which are local people, to be trained with the basic knowledge of agriculture and technology to work in this project specifically.
There are two areas designated as GPSC responsible areas which are Ban Suan Ton Nam, Khao Chamao District, Rayong Province, which is the business area of GPSC, and Ban Huai Khap, Bo Kluea District, Nan Province, where GPSC has continuously implemented its CSR projects. Over the course of a year, 12 students from the Restart Thailand project have been immersed in the areas to study problems and develop plans that are suitable in the context of each area while employees of GPSC and PTT Group have provided advice and support concerning the use of innovation and technology of the group to solve agricultural problems in the community of both areas. The details of the innovation in each area are as follow:
1) Ban Suan Ton Nam, Khao Chamao District, Rayong Province
- Smart Greenhouse with IoT system, size 6x12 meters
2 units
- On-grid solar system 3 kWp
2) Ban Huai Khab, Bo Kluea District, Nan Province
- Parabola Dome , size 8x16 meters
1 unit
- Smart Greenhouse with IoT system, size 8x20 meters
"Innovation for Society" Project of PTT Group has an implementation period of 3 years (year 2021-2023). In 2021, PTT has operated Smart Farming project in 25 areas across 20 provinces throughout Thailand.
In 2022 GPSC has a plan to collaborate with the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) by using their knowledge, technology, and energy innovations to improve efficiency of the project based on the geography and culture of the community in each area.
Smart Farming Project, Bo Kluea District, Nan Province video clip
Value/Benefits of Smart Farming Project to the Company
Emphasize company's image as an energy innovation leader
Value/Benefits and Society of Smart Farming Project to the Community and Society
Reduce expenses, generate income for the community in the area
Build professional skills for local communities
Natural Resources and Environment
GPSC realizes its responsibility to society and the environment, in areas and communities close to the operating areas of the company, by undertaking various projects to promote the conservation of the natural environment, as well as creating a balance of ecosystems and biodiversity and promoting the use of clean energy. Such projects include aquatic releasing, artificial coral reef planting, the 34-rai Forest Maintenance Project, the reforestation and check dam construction on Phudon-Huay Mahad mountain, the integrated waste management project, and the solar power system installation in remote areas, etc.
The Zero Waste Village project aims to raise awareness and promote campaigns for proper waste separation among people in the communities to create value of waste and leftovers and to help reduce environmental problems as well as protecting the natural resources in the communities. The Zero Waste Village project is meant to improve the quality of life, along with environmental conservation, in the form of social business or "social enterprise" to generate income back to the communities, while also creating sustainability within the society and communities.
GPSC has supported the waste management program of Baan Phai community in Nong Taphan Sub-District, Baan Khai District, Rayong Province, since 2018 until now. GPSC has promoted and supported the transfer of knowledge in comprehensive waste management, the processing of waste into various products (both recycle & upcycling), the development of community products as well as increasing distribution channels to generate additional income for people in the community.
Due to the epidemic situation of COVID-19, Baan Phai community was unable to open a full-scale waste bank operation. As a result, the waste that used to be a source of income for the community was circulating less while the amount of waste within the community increased. GPSC saw this problem and therefore collaborated with the Community Friends Association to bring students from Thammasat University, Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy to help in marketing planning, accounting, product redesign to make existing products more modern and attractive. One of the redesigned products is the recycled straw pillows under the brand "Tayla", which has increased sales of the community more than the traditional straw pillows.
Baan Phai Community Products of Rayong Province under "Tayla" brand
It is one of the products that has been developed further from the pillow that made from the community's used plastic straws to make it more interesting. Since there was a large volume of used plastic straws at the Baan Phai Community Waste Management Learning Center that were unable to sell and thus needed to be discarded or processed only, the Baan Phai community has then collected plastic straws from shops within the community and educated people in the community on recycling process. An ordinary pillow made from plastic straws for personal use, not for sale, has now become a plastic straw pillow that is more valuable and can be sold to people across the country under the "Tayla" brand.
Tayla pillows are initially available in two models, i.e. star fruit turtle pillow and green turtle pillow. The brand was inspired by the plastic straws that got into the sea and caused problems for small and large marine animals such as fish, turtles, shellfish, etc. Tayla products help in bringing the plastic straws that we discarded as a substitute for synthetic fibers or foam beads. 400 - 1,600 plastic straws are equal to 0.5 - 2 kg of synthetic fibers or foam beads.
The production process requires skillful sewing. The villagers in the community spend their free time to sit together and stuff pillows with straws. The activities help generate additional income for themselves and Baan Phai's waste bank. Additionally, the community intends to make the Tayla pillows as eco-products by using paper as a wrapper instead of plastic, tied with ropes, hanging carp from pandan leaves to add a fresh scent along with a thank you card in order to reduce the use of plastic.
Cleanliness is another important issue that GPSC and students from Thammasat University took into consideration for safety of the community and buyers. As such the plastic straws used in the process must be washed with detergent and disinfectant and soaked in the water. After that, they would be sterilized by heat in a solar oven for one hour to reassure that the products are clean and safe to use. At present, Tayla pillows are available for purchase on Facebook and at Baan Phai Community Waste Management Learning Center, Moo 1, Nong Taphan Sub-District, Baan Khai District, Rayong Province
In addition, the Tayla products of Baan Phai community has received support from many parties, including the government, the private sector, and independent organizations, in collecting used plastic straws from all over the country and sending them as main raw materials for making the products. The production and distribution capacity depends on the number of used plastic straws received.
The value that Baan Phai Community created from the Tayla brand in 2021 includes:
Sales of used plastic straw pillows
232 pieces
The amount of waste from plastic straws was reduced by
196 kg.
Community income increased by
73,174 THB
*Information available from June - November 2021
Value and Benefits of Zero Waste Village Project to the Company
Community satisfaction score 75%
Build good relationships with local communities
Efficient waste segregation, resulting in efficient production of fuel from community solid waste
45 hours that volunteer employees engage in these activities
Value and Benefits of Zero Waste Village Project to the Community and Society
7,655 KgCO2e of CO2 reduction from Zero Wate Village project
Raise awareness of waste management among communities and students in the area
Promote efficient use of resources and reduce the impact on the environment
Reduce the amount of waste in the community 170,000 ton per year
Generate income approximately 131,588 THB to local communities in 2021, increased from 25,000 THB in 2020
SROI = 1.12
Results or social benefits of the Zero Waste Village project
Economic aspects
Members of the waste bank earned additional income from selling of recycled waste, including plastics, glass, metal and products that are made from waste, such as Tayla pillows, baskets, coin purses, etc.
Waste bank members could save costs of training and buckets for fertilization
Chairman of the waste bank group was able to reduce the costs of travelling to request additional budgets from various government agencies to support the project
Waste buyers earned more income from processing waste products.
The Nong Taphan Tambon Administrative Organization was able to save more of their annual budget due to the reduction in the amount of waste in the community and the training support that the community received from GPSC.
Environmental aspects
The community reduced greenhouse gas emissions from traveling to attend the waste management and processing training courses
The community reduced greenhouse gas emissions from landfill
The community reduced greenhouse gas emissions by adding value to the waste, resulting in a decrease in the use of virgin material, such as plastics, glass, and metal.
Quality of life aspects
Chairman of the waste bank group had more personal time off from work because there was no need for her to travel to seek funding from various government agencies to support the project.
สุขใจไทยแลนด์
Sustainable Innovation
As the innovative power flagship of PTT Group, GPSC realizes the importance of innovation for organizational development and promotes the adoption of innovations in both business and society in response to the rapid changes of the world today. GPSC believes that social innovation, which is gaining more attention today, will be able to address social issues and improve the quality of life of people through an application of new technologies and ideas.
The GPSC Young Social Innovator (YSI) project started in 2018 in the form of innovative training and competition camp for high school youths or their equivalent in the eastern region. There were 39 teams applying for the competition. Due to the success of the newly launched project, in which one silver medal and one special award won from the Seoul International Invention Fair (SIIF), GPSC then expanded the target groups of YSI project in 2019 by including more youth. This expansion was made possible by raising the competition from a regional level to the national level, leading to the 2nd year, where 158 youth teams applied to join the program. The work of the second generation of youth was even more evident, despite the novel coronavirus epidemic or COVID-19, which has caused nearly all platforms to have been canceled or required to be reverted to an online platform during the international innovation competition, which is a show of the skills and potential of the Thai youth. Nevertheless, the work of the Thai youth in the GPSC YSI project was still evident on the international stage despite all such challenges since one gold and one special award were received from the International British Inventions, Innovation Exhibition (IBIX) and two gold, one silver, and three special awards were obtained in the World Invention Innovation Contest (WIC)
From the huge success of GPSC YSI Season 2 Project in 2019, GPSC determined to upgrade the project to a training camp that cultivated innovative skills and fostered a new generation of innovators for Thailand. In 2020 GPSC received a royal grace from Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn who awarded a trophy for GPSC YSI 2020 as a grand prize for the competition in the 3rd year, making the project drawing more attention from youth all over the country and over 303 teams applied for the project.
In 2021, the GPSC YSI project was underway in its 4th year in which we divided the competing innovation into three categories: products, inventions, processes, and services. There were 447 youth interested in applying for the competition and three trophies from Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn were awarded as the grand prize in each category.
This is an overview of the YSI Project from the 1st to the 3rd season. In addition to an increasing number of participants every year, the nomination projects were also able to develop up to seven patents and petty patents. They have also won more than 15 international innovation competitions and the project's social return assessment (SROI) in 3-year period is 1.62 which is a satisfactory result.
However, competition is not the real goal of the YSI project, as GPSC aims to promote youth to value their social community by bringing invention and innovations to develop and improve the quality of life in their own communities in this 4.0 era and from 4 years of the project's implementation. In addition to the awards from the international innovation competitions, which made the skill, commitment and academic achievement of the Thai youth clearly evident, GPSC YSI participants have also transferred and applied scientific knowledge and innovations for community development as per the examples below:
Adding value to germinated rice to also act as a deodorizing product through a scientific process, where the knowledge of such is transferred to the community by using raw materials from the community itself, distributing and generating income, creating a career both directly and indirectly for the people in the community.
Processing agricultural wastes into paper and developing such into various types of packaging which, in addition to transferring knowledge and increasing income of people in the communities, is also indirectly raising awareness of the preservation of natural resources and the environment of people in the community.
Processing of food waste from the community's food production process (fermented fish sauce) is an acid for the rubber production process that reduces the use of harmful chemicals and increases the weight of the rubber even more. Consequently, the quality of rubber has been improved and can be sold at a higher price as well.
GPSC believes that being a talented person must also coincide with being a good person, as well as being a good innovator, who must create useful pieces of work that can be of help to the community, society, and nation.
Value to the Company
Build good relationships with local communities
Develop specific business-related personnel
PR Value 2.96 MTHB
Value to the Community and Society
Access to educational opportunities
The quality of education has improved
Help develop the educational personnel of the country
Processing of food waste from the community's food production process (fermented fish sauce) as an acid for the process of harvesting rubber products
This is the winning nomination of GPSC YSI 2020 project from Saharat Rangsarit School, Nakhon Phanom Province. It is an outstanding work created through the process of design thinking and problem solving of the community which distributes pickled fish as an OTOP product, causing almost every household to dispose of waste from the pickled fish fermentation process (fluid from the fermentation process) to natural water sources. This affects natural resources and the environment due to the acidic conditions of the pickled fish fermented sauce. The youth had to solve the problem from the root cause, therefore, the fluid from the fermented fish was subjected to a scientific analysis process and the result was that the acid is sufficiently concentrated close to the acid droplets for rubber before latex harvesting. Therefore, scientific experiments and developments have been conducted to process wastewater from fermented soy fish into acidic water for rubber processing. In addition to being naturally acidic and reducing the dangers of using chemicals by rubber plantation farmers, the developed acid also helps increase the density and weight of the harvested rubber lumps. As a result, the rubber lumps have a better quality and farmers can sell them at a higher price as well.
At present, the aforementioned work has been filed for a patent, submitted for the international innovation competition, and received a gold medal and KIA Special Award from the World Invention Innovation Contest or WiC 2021 stage in Seoul, Republic of Korea. Also received a silver medal from the International Invention, Innovation & Technology Exhibition or ITEX 2021 staged in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The products have been distributed through online channels and most importantly, the youth gathered their friends from the school, go to community areas to pass on simple acid water production processes and guidelines to the rubber plantation farming communities surrounding the school, which can be produced for their own use in the community as well.
In the year 2021, the survey result of the community satisfaction with GPSC was 75% while the proportion of charitable donations was 24.02% (not exceeding 30%) of the total CSR budget, and the social return on investments (SROI) assessment were conducted for 12 projects/activities with values ranged from 1.73 - 5.79. The 12 projects/activities consisted of:
From the overall operating results, more progress has been made compared to the goals that have been set, yet the GPSC remains committed to achieving this goal by 2022 to support the vision of the GPSC in becoming a leading organization in sustainable innovation in the electricity business, both at a regional, as well as a global level.
Type of Social Activities Contribution
Unit
2021
Cash Contributions
THB
2,800,000
Time: employee volunteering during paid working hours
The content above is based on sustainability reporting standards by The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI Standards), and externally validated and verified for accuracy of the reporting data at "Limited Assurance" level
