The government is proceeding its years-long plan for joint production of petroleum resources in the Gulf of Thailand together with Cambodia, according to government sources.
Sources said Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon had pushed for cooperation with Cambodia for years. He discussed it with Suy Sem, Cambodian minister of mines and energy, in Bangkok on Dec 16, 2022. Both sides viewed possible cooperation as a solution to energy shortages.
The cabinet on Tuesday had an informal discussion on the realisation of the joint production of petroleum resources estimated at 5 trillion baht.
The movement followed a positive signal from Cambodia to revive negotiation on the joint petroleum production on an overlapping claim area (OCA) of both countries and it would be based on the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Development Area (JDA), sources said.
The Foreign Ministry had set up a working group to handle negotiations.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha earlier said the issue was important and concerned many parties and the Foreign Ministry and the Energy Ministry were supervising it.
