BANGKOK, 18 September 2019 (NNT) – The Committee on Energy Policy Administration (CEPA) has approved a proposal to cut contributions to the State Oil Fund, effective today (Sept 18). The measure is to deal with the rising oil prices on the global market, following a drone attack on two Aramco oil refineries in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
The Energy Minister, Sontirat Sontijirawong, said today that the CEPA meeting had agreed to reduce contributions to the oil fund by one baht a liter for petrol and 60 satang per liter for diesel, effective today. As a result, the retail prices of petrol and diesel in the country won’t change, which will help mitigate the cost of living.
The meeting also acknowledged a plan to import fuel from other nations, such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman, to alleviate any consequences of the drone attack on Saudi Arabia while ensuring adequate oil supplies in the country at this time. Thailand currently imports 170,000 barrels of crude oil from Saudi Arabia a day.
As of September 15, 2019, the State Oil Fund held 39.40 billion baht. Following the contribution cuts, the fund will run a liquidity deficit of 813 million baht a month.
On September 16, Thailand had reserves of crude oil for 54 days, totaling 6.4 billion liters. The country had sufficient liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for home cooking and the industrial and transport sectors for 12 days. The Department of Energy will first allocate LPG for home cooking after the 12-day period.
