Attawit proposed using the Prime Minister’s order under the Emergency Decree on Fuel Shortage Prevention B.E. 2516 (1973) to fix oil prices and avoid using the Oil Fund money derived from the public, because the crude oil cost basis is almost three months old.
On 4 Mar 2026 GMT+7, Attawit Suwanpakdee, Deputy Leader of the United Thai Nation Party, spoke about the energy crisis linked to Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, saying that the oil currently in Thailand is old stock imported at costs from nearly three months ago, not reflecting current global market prices. The private sector’s immediate price hikes referencing Singapore market prices are excessive profiteering.
The Energy Ministry plans to use the Oil Fund, which has just recovered to a positive balance, to subsidize prices. In reality, this means using public money to subsidize private company profits, with the public ultimately bearing the burden of reimbursing the fund.
Attawit added that when Pira Pan Salirathavibhakarn was Minister of Energy, a ministry announcement required disclosure of the actual costs of each refinery. Therefore, citing rising refined oil prices in Singapore to justify domestic price increases is unreasonable, since the real cost is based on crude oil purchased nearly three months ago.
He therefore proposed enforcing the 1973 Emergency Decree on Fuel Shortage Prevention, which empowers the Prime Minister to fix prices and ban exports immediately without spending a single baht from the Oil Fund. Since private companies continue selling oil from old cost batches, if the conflict prolongs and real costs change, then the use of the Oil Fund can be reconsidered. For the next 15 days, oil companies should not be allowed to make undue profits.