Cambodian power deal to be cancelled
The termination is legally required after Thailand stopped supplying electricity to Cambodia days before a Thai soldier stepped on a landmine while he and his group were on patrol along the border in the Chong Bok area of Nam Yuen district in Ubon Ratchathani on July 16.
'We asked the Cambodian Embassy through the National Security Council to confirm that the authority can terminate the contract,' said Mongkol Treekijjanon, the PEA governor.
The state utility now plans to distribute 50 megawatts of electricity previously sold to Cambodia to serve demand from users in Thailand.
During the clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers, PEA power distribution facilities, including electricity poles and cables, were damaged by shrapnel, resulting in power outages in some areas near the border, said Mr Mongkol.
Up to 90% of the facilities were repaired, he said.
Marginal decrease in power bills
In a related development, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has announced that a new power tariff of 3.95 baht a kilowatt-hour (unit) will be used for electricity bill calculation between September and December.
Energy Minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga had indicated earlier that the tariff would be cut slightly from 3.98 baht a unit, which is applicable until the end of August.
'We are able to reduce the power tariff because the prices of imported liquefied natural gas [LNG](are expected to decrease,' said Poonpat Leesombatpiboon, the ERC secretary-general.
Gas makes up 60% of fuels used for power generation in Thailand. The country needs to import more costly LNG as cheaper domestic gas supplies are on the decline.
Part of all power bills must be reimbursed to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) to help it clear a loss of 66 billion baht, which stems from past electricity price subsidy programmes.
If the power tariff remains unchanged at 3.98 baht a unit, the rate would be only enough to pay back part of Egat's debt, worth 7.07 billion baht, the ERC said earlier.
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