The Energy Ministry plans to reclaim refinery windfall profits to rescue the national Fuel Fund as global prices soar towards $300 per barrel.
Thailand is grappling with its most severe energy crisis on record, with the government moving to seize “windfall profits” from refineries to prevent a total collapse of the country’s fuel subsidy mechanism.
Prasert Sinsukprasert, permanent secretary for Energy, revealed on 3 April 2026 that global diesel prices have surged to nearly $300 per barrel—almost triple the standard rate of $92. The current volatility far outstrips the previous records set during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which saw prices peak at $150.
The crisis has left the state’s Fuel Fund nearly 50 billion baht in deficit. Although the fund holds a 150-billion-baht credit line, officials warn that at the current rate of depletion, these resources will last only another two months.