The Government plans to borrow up to 400 billion baht to ease impacts on people’s living costs caused by the energy crisis and to support the restructuring of Thailand’s energy sector to reduce vulnerability and strengthen energy security in the long run.

The Cabinet, during its meeting on 5 May 2026, approved a draft emergency decree authorizing the Ministry of Finance to borrow the funds to address the issues. The decree emphasizes major target groups in urgent need of assistance, including low-income and middle-income earners, farmers, small entrepreneurs, and SME operators. 

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul explained that the emergency decree also aimed to sustain economic activities and reduce production costs, especially in the agriculture sector, by acquiring fertilizer and other necessary production factors for farmers. 

Another objective is to support the country’s energy transition to a modern energy age, while reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Moreover, these measures also include human resource development to enhance the potential of workers in the production sector in order to cope with the changing situation and strengthen Thailand’s international competitiveness.

The Prime Minister stated that the Government would continue to strictly maintain fiscal discipline, saying that these measures would enable Thai people to deal with the global crisis more effectively and empower Thailand to handle future challenges with greater efficiency.

Meanwhile, Government Spokesperson Rachada Dhnadirek said that the Government’s decision to approve the emergency decree was intended to cushion the Thai economy following the Middle East conflict, which has led to price increases in oil, food, and other products, and affected economic activities worldwide. 

She pointed out that the situation was not a normal one, saying that the Government needed to issue the emergency decree to prevent the risk of the Thai economy entering a period of high inflation combined with slow growth, referred to as stagflation. Therefore, it was urgent and necessary to issue the decree as a special instrument to deal with the situation.

The draft emergency decree will be submitted to the House of Representatives for consideration on 14 May 2026. It adheres to the state fiscal and financial discipline framework, and the loan will be secured from domestic sources, with low-interest rates.