No hike in electricity rates until August, minister assures
There will be no increase in electricity rates from May to August this year for both the household and industrial sectors, Energy Minister Supattanapong Punmeechaow said on Thursday.
He made the remark during the seminar "The Next Thailand's Future" at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre in Bangkok.
Supattanapong said that electricity is currently at 4.72 baht per unit for the household sector and at 5.33 baht per unit for the industrial sector.
"The electricity bill should not rise further as natural gas production cost is likely to drop," he said.
He said the ministry's move to maintain electricity rates for the household and industrial sectors aims to mitigate the impact of the economic recession on industrial operators.
He added that the ministry has instructed related agencies, including the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), to maintain the electricity price at the current rate.
Supattanapong also confirmed that the ministry could deal with the impact of the rising fuel tariff (FT) on the electricity bill.
The ERC board recently raised the FT to 98 satang per unit, which could hike the electricity rate of the household sector to 4.75 baht per unit.
“We have to ensure that the rising FT will not affect the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand [Egat],” he said, adding that Egat must receive up to 130 billion baht compensation for bearing the FT.
"We have to take care of the cost of living of the household sector, and the industrial sector when the country's exports are not good," he added.
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