Chaiwat Choorit, senior executive vice president of the oil and gas company, said yesterday PTT would report within a week the final price of ethanol, due to take effect next month, to the Energy Policy and Planning Office. Ethanol producers currently quote the price of ethanol for June and the following months at Bt25.30 per litre.

Inconstant ethanol supply has worried petrol station operators that offer gasohol, a mixture of up to 10-per-cent ethanol and petrol.

PTT, which dominates gasohol supplies with a 38-per-cent market share, saw its sales rocket by 360 per cent last year to 44 million litres. It has had to help ethanol plants secure sugar molasses - the raw material used to make ethanol.

"With inconstant supplies, our gasohol sales should remain unchanged, at 38-40 million litres per month," Chaiwat said.

Metta Banterngsook, director general of the Energy Policy and Planning Office, said the office was considering reducing the required contribution from gasohol sales to the Oil Fund by 10 satang per litre for every baht increase in ethanol to help retailers maintain gasohol and octane-95 petrol at Bt1.50 per litre.

"If ethanol producers ask for Bt2.30 higher, it means the contribution will have to be lowered by 23 satang," he said. At present, the Oil Fund collects 54 satang for every litre of gasohol sold.

Metta insisted the lower contribution would not hit the Oil Fund financially as gasohol sales remain low compared to octane-91 and octane-95 petrol consumption, which generate Bt2.30 and Bt2.50, respectively, for every litre sold.

He added the government would not intervene in the ethanol price.

"We believe that if the price of ethanol goes above Bt25 per litre, those plants that are reluctant to kick start operations will be encouraged to produce ethanol.

"And once there are more plants, ethanol prices will eventually fall as a result of higher supplies," said Metta.