Household electricity bills to rise in May and again in September
Fuel prices will be gradually raised from May following the increase in global energy prices due to fallout from the Russia-Ukraine war, the Energy Regulatory Commission said on Monday.
The stepped increases is the “Ft” tariff will last until April next year.
The fuel adjustment cost, or Ft, is a variable tariff that reflects changes in the uncontrolled cost of utilities, such as fuel costs and purchasing power, which differ from the base tariff. The ERC reviews the Ft every four months – in January, May and September.
ERC secretary-general Komkrit Tantrawanich said the commission had calculated the energy cost based on the current situation and concluded that the Ft for May-August should be increased to Bt0.24 per unit to cover the cost. This will result in household electricity bills rising from Bt3.76 to Bt4 per unit.
“The commission will hold a public hearing on the adjustment this week, before announcing the official Ft value for the May-August period,” he said. “As for the September-December period, the ERC estimates that the Ft will be raised to Bt0.64 per unit, while the January-April period of next year will see the Ft rise to Bt1.1 per unit.”
Komkrit added that Ft adjustment estimations are based on the current global energy situation and the ERC’s energy cost management policies. These include the purchase of electricity from Laos’s Nam Theun hydropower plant and domestic SPPs/VSPPs (small power producers/very small power producers), waiving excise tax for B0 diesel and fuel oil used in electricity generation, and the energy pool price initiative.