Treasury asked to extend diesel tax reduction by 2 months

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2023
Treasury asked to extend diesel tax reduction by 2 months

At the Cabinet meeting yesterday (June 13), caretaker Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered the Treasury to extend the reduction of diesel tax for another 2 months to cover the transitional period of government. The current tax reduction period is due to expire on July 20.

According to Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister, Supattanapong Punmeechaow, should the Treasury not extend the tax measure, the oil fund mechanism will be used to reduce the price of diesel. He added that the status of the oil fund has improved, with a negative balance of 63.4 billion baht remaining.

The government has so far reduced diesel tax on 7 occasions, causing a loss of revenue of 158 billion baht. A further reduction for two months would lead to an added loss of around 10 billion baht

However, with diesel widely used as the primary fuel in all sectors, from upstream to downstream, making it a significant cost factor in the production of goods, electricity, and transportation across all industries, a further reduction is seen as vital to keep living costs down.

Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith stated that the Ministry of Finance has been in discussions with the Ministry of Energy to find a joint solution to support the diesel tax reduction measure. Should it not be possible to proceed with the extension, the oil fund mechanism can be utilised as a temporary solution, Arkhom confirmed.

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