EGAT outlines grid and LNG plans as Thailand's power demand rises

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) is broadening its energy-security strategy through more flexible liquefied natural gas (LNG) procurement, regional power links, renewable energy, storage and transmission upgrades as electricity demand grows and data centres place new pressure on the national grid.

The approach reflects priorities set out by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul in his opening address at Gastech 2026 in Bangkok on Monday (September 14), where he highlighted rapidly rising electricity demand driven not only by industrial growth but increasingly by artificial intelligence, cloud computing and data centres.

Anutin sets three priorities for Thailand's energy transition

Anutin outlined three priorities for managing the energy trilemma of security, affordability and sustainability.

The first is to maintain secure and affordable energy supplies. Natural gas, he stressed, “remains an important foundation of Thailand's power system”, providing reliability and flexibility as renewable energy expands.

Gas and LNG will therefore continue to play an essential role during the transition as Thailand diversifies its energy sources and seeks to reduce exposure to volatility in global markets.

“A transition that leaves people unable to pay their energy bills will not be sustainable,” Anutin warned. “We must keep the system secure, the cost manageable, and the benefits widely shared.”

His second priority is ensuring that the energy transition is practical and achievable. Alongside the rooftop solar scheme, Anutin highlighted investment in grid modernisation and energy storage, while identifying bioenergy as one of Thailand's particular strengths.

Thailand's agricultural base and established supply chains allow crop residues and by-products to be converted into ethanol, biodiesel and biomethane, creating value for industry, farmers and local communities.

The third priority is linking energy policy with investment and economic opportunity. Anutin argued that investors now require more than financial incentives, pointing to the need for “clear rules, timely decisions, modern infrastructure, skilled people and reliable access to cleaner energy”.

Against that policy backdrop, EGAT executives at Gastech detailed how the state utility is preparing the power system for those challenges, ranging from fuel procurement and cross-border electricity trading to transmission expansion and energy storage.

EGAT redefines energy security around reliable power

Dr Narin Phoawanich, governor of EGAT, told Gastech 2026 that Thailand needed to look beyond fuel availability as rising demand, constraints on domestic resources and infrastructure requirements reshape the electricity system.

“Energy security, especially for electricity, is being redefined,” Narin said during the panel discussion, “LNG in the age of electrification: Contracting, competition and demand realities”.

He argued that security could not be pursued separately from sustainability and affordability because securing supply at excessive cost would ultimately feed through to electricity tariffs.

EGAT is therefore seeking to reduce the impact of fuel-price spikes by expanding the use of renewable energy, hydropower from Laos and domestic biomass while ensuring sufficient fuel is available to maintain reliable electricity supplies.

As Thailand's economy becomes increasingly electrified, Narin stressed that energy security will depend not simply on securing gas supplies but on ensuring the power system can deliver reliable electricity under changing conditions.

Flexible LNG contracts aim to limit price risks

That broader approach also extends to how EGAT manages LNG procurement.

Narin highlighted the importance of flexibility in both supply sources and contract structures. Thailand can source LNG from several regions, including Australia, Africa and the United States, reducing dependence on any single origin.

EGAT is also seeking the right balance between long-, medium- and short-term contracts to manage exposure to fluctuations in spot-market prices.

“We need to find the right mix,” Narin explained, noting that sufficient medium- and long-term contracted supply could help reduce the impact of sharp rises in spot LNG prices.

Regional power links strengthen energy resilience

Beyond fuel procurement, regional electricity interconnection forms another part of EGAT's strategy for strengthening supply resilience.

Narin pointed to the Lao PDR-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project (LTMS-PIP), under which electricity generated in Laos can be transmitted through Thailand and Malaysia to Singapore.

“Long-term relationship is really important,” he noted, arguing that stronger interconnections between countries could help address energy disruptions while improving supply stability and flexibility over the longer term.

While these measures address security of supply, EGAT is simultaneously preparing for another challenge: the rapid emergence of large new electricity loads from data centres.

Data-centre growth increases pressure on Thailand's grid

In a separate Gastech panel, “The ASEAN strategic shift to renewables and compute power”, Warit Rattanachuen, EGAT deputy governor for strategy, outlined the challenges created by rapidly expanding data-centre electricity demand.

Warit reported that EGAT had received requests from data-centre operators totalling about 3.5 gigawatts (GW), compared with Thailand's system peak of around 40GW.

Meeting this demand will require changes on both the generation and transmission sides. EGAT has asked the Ministry of Energy to consider extending the operation of existing power plants as an interim measure, while longer-term planning includes new large-scale generation operated by EGAT and independent power producers.

Transmission capacity is another concern. Warit outlined a project worth about THB1 billion proposed to the government to reinforce the transmission system in eastern Thailand, while warning that western Bangkok could also face constraints as data-centre projects become increasingly concentrated there.

Artificial intelligence data centres present an additional operational challenge because their electricity consumption can change rapidly, potentially affecting voltage and frequency stability across the system.

EGAT has proposed battery-based measures, particularly in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), to help manage these fluctuations.

The authority is also seeking financial safeguards from operators to support investment in the transmission and distribution infrastructure required for major new data-centre loads.

Storage and SMRs support future power system

Preparing the grid for rising demand will also have to go hand in hand with Thailand's transition towards cleaner sources of electricity.

Warit indicated that renewable energy, particularly solar power, is expected to account for much of Thailand's additional electricity supply over the short and medium term.

EGAT has established a renewable-energy forecasting centre and plans to develop greater control capabilities as more variable renewable generation enters the system. It is also preparing curtailment mechanisms to help maintain grid stability when necessary.

Energy storage will play an increasingly important role in providing that flexibility. According to Warit, the new power development plan includes around 160 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of battery energy storage and about 40GWh of pumped-hydro capacity.

EGAT is also considering grid-forming inverters operating alongside large-scale battery and solar projects to strengthen power-system stability.

For the longer term, the plan includes about 1.2GW of small modular reactor (SMR) capacity, which Warit described as a potential source of firm zero-carbon electricity that could also support grid stability.

EGAT will meanwhile continue modernising the transmission network to accommodate higher levels of renewable and other zero-carbon generation as Thailand's power mix evolves.

Warit concluded that the objective was to ensure the electricity system could reliably accommodate renewable energy and future zero-carbon supply.

Taken together, the measures outlined at Gastech show EGAT pursuing a wider power-security strategy in which LNG flexibility and regional electricity links address near-term supply risks, while grid reinforcement, storage and new generation technologies prepare Thailand for rising demand and a progressively lower-carbon power system.