On May 5, 2026, Anutin Charnvirakul, Thailand’s Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, announced the Cabinet’s resolution to issue a Royal Decree authorizing the Ministry of Finance to borrow funds to address the impact of the energy crisis and support the country’s energy transition, amounting to THB 400 billion.
Anutin stated that this decision was due to the conflict in the Middle East, which has impacted global energy prices and economic activities worldwide. Rising energy prices have spread to food prices and are pressuring Thai people’s cost of living, which raises the risk of Thailand entering a period of economic stagflation in the near future.
The Prime Minister indicated that this Royal Decree has two clear objectives: 1) to alleviate the cost-of-living impact and support economic activities, and 2) to accelerate the restructuring of the country’s energy sector to reduce vulnerabilities and address national challenges.
Measures under this Royal Decree will focus on those in urgent need, such as low- and middle-income earners, farmers, small business operators—especially SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises)—and the economic sectors impacted by higher energy costs.
Meanwhile, Ekniti Nitithanprapas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, said that the 400-billion-baht loan is a reduction from the previous THB 500 billion proposal, as it has been assessed to be sufficient. The fund will be separated into THB 200 billion for remedial and relief measures to reduce living costs and another THB 200 billion for the energy transition. He further confirmed that the loan decree would not affect the public debt ceiling, which remains at 70% of GDP.
For the next steps, after the Cabinet’s approval on Tuesday, the decree will be announced in the Royal Gazette by May 14. Then, it will be submitted to the House of Representatives for consideration. Under this Royal Decree, a screening committee for loan expenditures will be established, with Lavaron Sangsnit, Permanent Secretary for Finance, as chairman.
The committee will consider project proposals from various agencies to ensure they meet the decree’s two objectives and can be completed by September 30, 2026. The timeframe for using the loan can be extended until September 30, 2027.
Ekniti also added that the THB 400 billion loan will be entirely sourced domestically, thus posing no foreign exchange risk, while domestic liquidity remains high.
He noted that following discussions with the Bank of Thailand (BOT), there is an excess liquidity of over 1 trillion baht, which is sufficient to accommodate this borrowing. Additionally, domestic interest rates remain low, resulting in a lower cost of borrowing.
