The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) and PTT have agreed to freeze the electricity price for September through December at 4.18 baht/unit, as requested by the Ministry of Energy to ease the burden on consumers.
The Energy Regulatory Commission said earlier that the price during the last four months of the year may rise to between 4.65 and 6.01 baht/unit, due to a weakening of the baht against the greenback from May to August and the increase in the spot price of LNG, the main fuel used for electricity production, by US$3.2 per million BTU.
The fuel tariff (FT) for the last quarter may be adjusted to between 46.83 and 182.99 satang/unit, which means the electricity price will have to be adjusted to 4.65-6.01 baht/unit
Energy Minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga said yesterday that he will report to the cabinet next Tuesday about the cooperation received from EGAT and PTT in absorbing the increased fuel costs to maintain the current price.
Business operators have complained that rises in energy prices increase their production costs, which make their products less competitive in the global market and less accessible to low income local consumers.
