Bangkok, Thailand: Thailand offered subsidies worth up to $1.5 billion Monday to help households install solar panels, as it seeks to boost renewable energy and reduce dependence on costly imports.
The government offered almost $1,500 (50,000 baht) towards installation costs for up to one million households, while also promising low-interest loans and tax benefits for those fitting panels to their homes or land.
"Today, we import a lot of our energy, we're among the top buyers globally," Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas told reporters.
But he said this "was not a sustainable solution".
The solar panel subsidy is expected to be approved at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, with applications to open soon after, Ekniti said.
It will be funded out of a 400-billion-baht emergency borrowing package announced earlier this year to cushion the economic impacts of the Middle East conflict.
Around 60 percent of electricity production in Thailand comes from natural gas, with renewables making up almost 11 percent, according to government data from January to July 2026.
Much of the gas has historically come from offshore production or via pipeline from Myanmar, but declining production has forced Bangkok to step up liquid natural gas (LNG) imports.
Imported LNG made up 32 percent of its natural gas in the January-July period.
Thailand aims to have 51 percent of domestic electricity generated from renewable sources by 2037.
