Attawit Suwanpakdee presses the Ministry of Energy to urgently raise electricity rates for data centers, expressing concern that the Metropolitan Electricity Authority and the Provincial Electricity Authority cannot bear the costs, leading to reduced state revenue and impacting public expenses.
At 11:30 a.m. on 17 Sep 2026 GMT+7 at the parliament, Attawit Suwanpakdee, MP of the United Thai Nation Party, addressed the government's electricity cost relief measures. He noted that the government currently reduces the price for the first 200 electricity units to no more than 3 baht per unit, spending over 12 billion baht. Additionally, public street lighting electricity costs are removed from household bills, costing over 18 billion baht. Altogether, the government absorbs more than 30 billion baht on behalf of the public, starting with the September 2026 electricity billing cycle. The Energy Minister had previously stated that electricity rates for data centers would be adjusted to be higher than household rates, but no clear timeline has been announced. Attawit observed that the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), overseen by the Ministry of Energy, has yet to reduce electricity costs for the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) and Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), which are under the Ministry of Interior. If this situation prolongs, both agencies will incur losses and it could affect future electricity grid expansion.
Attawit continued, citing data from the State Enterprise Policy Office (SEPO) as of 31 Aug 2026, showing that the PEA remitted 16.011 billion baht and the MEA remitted 5.104 billion baht in revenue to the state. Combined, these amounts remain insufficient to cover the state's budget burden, leaving nearly 9 billion baht unaccounted for. He emphasized that as government expenditures increase, revenue must be raised accordingly. The Energy Minister should promptly announce higher electricity rates for data centers and clearly define the cost-sharing proportions among EGAT, PEA, and MEA.
He stressed that delays by the Ministry of Energy have consequences and urged immediate decision-making without hesitation. Currently, the two electricity authorities are unable to sustain the costs, which will definitely impact budget expenditures.