On May 27, Treerat Sirichantaropas, former Deputy Secretary-General of the Thai Sang Thai Party and now CEO of a leading solar company, posted on his Facebook page and personal X platform about the draft Solar Energy Promotion Act proposed by the Ministry of Energy. He questioned whether the bill is truly intended to benefit the public or to serve the interests of the Energy Minister and associates.
Amid political turmoil and economic stagnation, the Ministry of Energy and the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency (DEDE) are quietly drafting this bill, currently open for public comment until May 30.
Treerat, now in the solar installation business, emphasized that licensing obstacles are a major issue needing urgent reform due to delays and corruption across multiple agencies. While he hoped the bill would help promote solar energy for the public, he found it instead to be a political tool.
The draft bill grants sweeping authority to the Energy Minister, including issuing regulations, deciding installation locations, selecting equipment and electrical grid partners, and setting electricity purchase rates — all without checks and balances. It even allows officials appointed by the minister to inspect or dismantle solar systems in homes, with property owners liable for the costs.
Moreover, the bill requires everyone intending to install solar systems to notify the DEDE director-general 30 days in advance and strictly follow yet-to-be-drafted regulations. Non-compliance could lead to enforced system removal by state officials.
Treerat sees the bill as a blank check consolidating power with the Minister and DEDE, contradicting the current need to simplify solar adoption for the public. He called for the rejection of this hidden-agenda bill and invited others to voice their opinions on law.go.th by May 30.