NESDC Overhauls Data Center Investment Criteria

Thansettakij•Economy•2d ago

Reader Briefing

The NESDC is developing regulations to manage data center investments to mitigate impacts on water and electricity resources.

•Secretary-General Danucha Pichayanan announced the development of investment criteria for data centers on August 24, 2026.
•BOI reported 36 data center and cloud service projects requesting investment promotion in 2025 with a value of approximately 728 billion baht.
•The NESDC is coordinating with the ONWR and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to balance water and environmental impacts.

Overview

•Danucha Pichayanan and the NESDC are drafting guidelines to regulate data center investments, specifically targeting Hyperscale providers, to ensure efficient resource use.
•Data center businesses consume high volumes of water and electricity, with water issues being more complex as they affect multiple sectors and other industries.
•The NESDC has submitted a list of candidates for the Chairperson of the Data Center Business Policy Committee, with the appointment expected soon.
•BOI recorded 36 data center and cloud service projects seeking promotion in 2025, totaling approximately 728 billion baht.
•The Data Center Association of Thailand predicts the industry could increase its GDP share from 0.93% to 2.47% over five years.
•Krungthai COMPASS reports that over 60% of data center development costs are for imported equipment, limiting benefits for Thai operators to construction work.
•Global data center investment between 2025-2030 is estimated by McKinsey & Company to reach 6.7 trillion US dollars, with Asia-Pacific accounting for 34%.

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Key Quotes

Danucha Pichayanan

"The current mechanism for considering data centers is fragmented because this business has not yet been clearly defined as a type of industry, allowing it to operate in many areas."

กลไกการพิจารณาดาต้าเซ็นเตอร์ในปัจจุบันมีความกระจัดกระจาย เนื่องจากธุรกิจนี้ยังไม่ถูกนิยามชัดเจนว่าเป็นอุตสาหกรรมประเภทใด ทำให้สามารถดำเนินการได้ในหลายพื้นที่

Key Entities

Organization

NESDC(สศช.)

The National Economic and Social Development Council acting as the secretariat developing data center investment criteria.

ONWR(สำนักงานทรัพยากรน้ำแห่งชาติ)

The Office of the National Water Resources consulted by the NESDC on water balance issues.

Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment(กระทรวงทรัพยากรธรรมชาติและสิ่งแวดล้อม)ℹ️

The ministry consulted by the NESDC regarding environmental impacts of data centers.

BOI(สำนักงานคณะกรรมการส่งเสริมการลงทุน)

The Board of Investment that provides investment promotion for data center and cloud service projects.

NBTC(กสทช.)

The agency that issues digital service licenses for data center operators.

McKinsey & Companyℹ️

A firm that estimated global data center investment values between 2025-2030.

Data Center Association of Thailand(สมาคมดาต้าเซ็นเตอร์แห่งประเทศไทย)

The association forecasting the industry's contribution to GDP and employment.

Microsoftℹ️

A company whose data center in the Netherlands used 84 million liters of water in 2021.

XAI

A company whose data center in Mississippi, USA, faced disputes over gas turbine installations.

Krungthai COMPASS

An entity providing reports on the high proportion of imported equipment in data center development.

Federation of Thai Industries(สภาอุตสาหกรรมฯ)ℹ️

The organization whose survey showed concern over limited value-add for Thai entrepreneurs.

Person

Danucha Pichayanan(ดนุชา พิชยนันท์)

The Secretary-General of the National Economic and Social Development Council.

Place

Loudoun Countyℹ️

A location in Virginia, USA, cited as an example of data centers generating local tax revenue.

Law

Prime Minister's Office Regulation on the Data Center Business Policy Committee(ระเบียบสำนักนายกรัฐมนตรี ว่าด้วยคณะกรรมการนโยบายการประกอบกิจการดาต้าเซ็นเตอร์)

The regulation announcing the establishment of the Data Center Business Policy Committee.