Two MPs from the People’s Party blamed Thailand's soaring electricity bills on the government’s overpayment for energy from companies linked to the Shinawatra family.

In a no-confidence debate on Monday, 24 March, Woraphop Viriyaroj, a party-list MP from the People’s Party, stated that while global events, such as the war in Ukraine, have increased energy prices, a significant portion of the blame lies with the government.

Thailand has 13 large private power plants, 7 of which never operate but still receive 2.5 billion baht per month in availability payments. This results in a 55 billion baht annual loss, costing households 730 baht each per year or 61 baht extra per month on electricity bills.

In April 2023, one month before the general election, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha launched a plan to purchase 5,200 megawatts of renewable energy. Continuing this policy, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who oversees the phase 2 purchase of 3,600 megawatts, has:

1. not gone through an open bidding system, instead setting a predetermined price for 25 years—despite the fact that renewable energy costs are decreasing annually due to technological advances.

2. announced the purchase despite an overlap with a direct power purchase agreement for 2,200 megawatts, benefiting energy conglomerates.

3. locked in a 3,600-megawatt quota for private firms that submitted proposals two years ago, effectively blocking new entrants.

4. failed to announce clear technical scoring criteria, leaving room for discretion in selecting energy firms with close ties to the Prime Minister.

“The government rushed to sign power purchase agreements with energy conglomerates closely linked to the Prime Minister's family. It was also found that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the Prime Minister’s father, has played golf multiple times with these energy investors,” Woraphop said. “Having tycoons as friends or golfing buddies is not inherently wrong—unless the government and the Prime Minister push forward policies that benefit them.”

Acting in this way, the government is continuing the military junta’s policy, benefiting conglomerates in exchange for Thaksin’s return to Thailand. Although the process has been halted, the misconduct has already occurred. Woraphop also expressed concern that the deals could resume once public attention fades. Despite Paetongtarn's criticism of the policy during the election campaign, she has continued to follow the same approach as the previous government.

Supachot Chaiyasat, a People’s Party MP, continued the debate by highlighting the costly 35-year contracts to purchase energy from dams owned by certain energy conglomerates, despite cheaper alternatives. He also addressed the Power Development Plan, which overestimates energy demand by relying on inflated GDP growth projections.

"There is also a new policy-level corruption plan to benefit energy conglomerates, by letting agencies inflate future electricity demand projections, which are excessive and do not align with reality, by citing economic growth estimates so that more power plants can be constructed by energy conglomerates, totalling over 4,400 megawatts”, said Supachot. “If that happens, it will lead to the creation of 16 more large power plants, which means that the Prime Minister is making energy capitalists well-off."

In response, Pirapan Salirathavibhaga, Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister, stated that the issue of purchasing renewable energy had been addressed earlier when a letter was sent to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). However, the ERC declared that it lacked the authority, leaving no other options. Prime Minister Paetongtarn then called for a meeting of the Energy Policy Administration Committee (EPAC), demonstrating that the Prime Minister is not indifferent to the matter.

He also said that the PDP is delayed because he, like the People’s Party MPs, disagrees with the projections of the energy demand.

"I disagree. How can we project that we'll need 800,000 megawatts by 2580 [2037]? But these days this is not done by the government. It is done by bureaucracy. But since we must be responsible, we must take care of it. … It is still not finished because the government disagrees, not because the government is opening doors for the capitalists," said Pirapan.

He also pointed out that under this administration, "there have still not been any auctions at all," adding that the purchase of 2,100 megawatts of electricity was completed under the previous government.

Meanwhile, Paetongtarn said that the policies on electricty were not implemented by her administration. She also said that the current government has not approved any energy purchase, and that contracts regarding the purchase of energy in neighbouring countries were already in place before she became Prime Minister.

The debate on energy prices coincided with Thailand's hot season, particularly from March to May, when energy demand is high and electricity bills rise. Due to climate change, Thailand's climate is becoming more unstable. According to Thai PBS, a lowering of just 1°C in setting air conditioning temperatures could lead to a 3% increase in electricity bills.

Before the censure debate, Thaksin Shinawatra stated that the government should focus on reducing electricity prices to 2.5 baht per unit to attract foreign investment in data centres. Earlier in January, he had suggested 3.7 baht per unit. Academics argued that several measures could be employed, but 3.80 baht per unit is the most feasible option.