Thailand

Energy Security, Gas-constrained Industry, and Export Competitiveness

Thailand's power system runs on gas that is getting harder to source at home. Natural gas supplies 65% of electricity, with solar and wind together ~7% (2025). The Gulf of Thailand gas fields are in decline, pushing it toward costlier LNG imports. Thailand is ASEAN's largest petrochemical producer. The Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) hosts the planned carbon- capture hub and a new LNG terminal.

From 2010 to 2025, manufacturing's share of GDP has fallen from 31% to 24%.Thailand is betting on EVs to reverse this, with THB 140 billion in approved EV supply-chain investment and a push to localise battery cell production, the supply chain's most critical link.

In August 2026 Thailand opened direct power purchase agreements to all industries, letting companies contract renewable power straight from private producers. For exporters, this widens access to clean electricity and creates new demand for renewable developers that could ease the grid's reliance on imported gas.

Drought, Urban Heat, and Adaptation Financing

Rice and livestock drive three-quarters of Thailand's agricultural emissions. A forecasted El Niño drought is projected to cost agriculture over THB62bn between late 2026 and mid-2027, with rice output alone falling ~5.4 million tonnes (over two-thirds of the damage). Alternate Wetting and Drying cuts methane by 30-50% at a net benefit to farmers. But Thai farmers cite water availability and difficulty of monitoring field water levels as major barriers to adoption.

Heat and water stress are a more urban, industrial story: 63% of the EEC’s wastewater goes untreated, and Bangkok's heat island effect costs the city ~THB61bn per additional degree Celsius in lost productivity and higher electricity costs. Half the workforce works in vulnerable, informal employment with little ability to adapt and absorb the impacts.

Circular Economy, Biomanufacturing, and Green Growth Infrastructure

Thailand’s national framework, the Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG) Model, spans agriculture and food, wellness and medicine, materials and biochemicals, and tourism. However, Thailand's circular economy legislation lags its peers. Its draft Sustainable Packaging Management Act is not expected until 2027, making Thailand one of the last of major ASEAN economies to legislate EPR. This lack of binding plastics legislation matters because the plastics industry is 6.7% of GDP (2023). Its plastics trade runs a surplus – almost USD16bn in 2022 – yet Thailand recovered only a quarter of its plastic waste that year.

A Good Food Institute APAC-commissioned study ranked Thailand first of nine APAC countries for its strong feedstock availability, which is typically the largest cost in fermentation manufacturing, and highlighted its generous government incentives. However, Thailand lacks a clear approval process for novel fermentation-derived food ingredients.