Bangkok: 'Trirat' Sirichanthropas has criticized 'Pirapan' Salirathavibhaga for failing to address the issue of high electricity bills, following the latter's announcement that the perpetual Adder electricity purchase contract will not be cancelled. This decision has resulted in the government purchasing electricity at an elevated cost of 11 baht per unit.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Trirat Sirichanthropas, a former deputy secretary-general of the Thai Sang Thai Party and current clean energy businessman, took to social media platforms Facebook and X to question the sincerity of Mr. Pirapan Salirathavibhaga, the Minister of Energy, in tackling the issue of expensive electricity. Mr. Pirapan had previously declared that the ADDER electricity purchase contract could not be annulled due to contractual obligations. Mr. Trirat criticized this stance, arguing that the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand's contract with ADDER clean energy investors is the root cause of high electricity costs. The agreement allows for indefinite renewals, compelling the government to purchase costly electricity. Mr. Trirat pointed out that the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) had announced in February that negotiations with power plant groups were possible, provided the National Energy Policy Committee (NEPC) reached a resolution.
Mr. Trirat expressed confusion over Mr. Pirapan's statement, emphasizing that as the Minister of Energy, Mr. Pirapan could propose a resolution to the board for the ERC to renegotiate with the Adder power plants benefiting from these 'unfair contracts.' He argued that such a move would alleviate the burden of high electricity bills on the public. Mr. Trirat also highlighted a precedent from 2016 when the Energy Regulatory Commission successfully negotiated with some ADDER biomass power plants to switch to the Feed in Tariff system. He questioned why this successful approach was not being replicated, especially given Mr. Pirapan's legal expertise. Mr. Trirat urged Mr. Pirapan to demonstrate sincerity in solving the issue of steep electricity prices, criticizing the continuation of contracts that favor capitalists at the expense of Thai citizens, costing up to 25 billion baht annually. The Adder power plants, with a substantial capacity of nearly 3,000 megawatts, remain a significant factor in the high electric ity costs.