Energy authorities are planning to decrease electricity prices following a recent reduction in the power tariff by pushing for a plan to better manage gas usage in the country, says an Energy Ministry official.
The move comes after the Energy Regulatory Commission announced on April 30 the power tariff, which is used to calculate power bills, is shrinking to 3.98 baht a kilowatt-hour (unit) from 4.15 baht a unit for use from May 1 through Aug 31.
Energy policymakers view the gas issue as the next step in reducing the price of power bills, said the official who requested anonymity.
He was referring to a recent interview by Atavit Suwanpakdee, an advisor to the energy minister, who stressed the need to examine Thailand's two gas pools.
The two pools are known as Gulf Gas and Pool Gas. Gulf Gas is the weighted average price of natural gas from fields in the Gulf of Thailand. Pool Gas is the weighted average wellhead price of gas from the Gulf, Myanmar and imported liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Gas is currently supplied to the power and industrial sectors.
The Energy Ministry said earlier if supplies from Thailand's two gas pools were better managed, power producers would gain greater access to cheaper gas sources, which would eventually reduce their operating costs as gas accounts for about 60% of fuels used for power generation in the country.
The official said the power tariff is declining after it soared to 4.68 baht a unit in May 2023. The rate fell to 4.15 baht a unit last year and stayed at that level until the end of April 2025.
The Energy Policy and Planning Office is working on a plan to better manage gas usage. One idea is to set different gas prices for power generation and the industrial sector, said the official.
Isares Rattanadilok Na Phuket, vice-chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries, said he supports the state's plan to address the gas issue.
However, the government must ensure that changes in gas price management will not place an additional financial burden on certain sectors, Mr Isares stated on his Facebook page.
"The government must solve expensive gas prices at their root cause," he said, referring to a need to carefully manage imported LNG, which can fluctuate greatly in price.
Thailand needs to import more LNG because the domestic gas supply, which is cheaper, is dwindling.