Weerayuth Urges Data Center Board to Resolve 4 Major Issues

Thairath•Politics•18d ago

Reader Briefing

Weerayuth Kanchuchat has urged the Data Center Policy Committee to address regulatory gaps and prioritize high-tech AI projects.

•Weerayuth Kanchuchat called on the Data Center Policy Committee to decide on four critical issues during its first meeting on September 4.
•The request includes enforcing regulations retroactively on 57 BOI-approved projects valued over 811,000 million baht.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat proposed closing legal loopholes that allow data centers to avoid EIA reports and factory permits.
•The proposal suggests prioritizing AI Machine Learning data centers over general Cloud storage centers.

•Weerayuth Kanchuchat made these demands on September 2, 2026.
•The Data Center Policy Committee is scheduled for its first meeting on Friday, September 4.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat stated that the Data Center Policy Committee must dare to apply regulations retroactively to 57 projects already approved by the Board of Investment (BOI) regarding water, electricity, EIA, and Local Content.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat warned that current legal loopholes allow some companies to register data centers as warehouses to avoid EIA reports and industrial factory permits.
•TikTok's investment of hundreds of billions of baht was not counted in BOI data because it was classified as Data Hosting rather than data center infrastructure.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat proposed that Local Content requirements should connect the Thai economy to high-tech supply chains rather than benefiting only landowners and contractors.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat suggested the government prioritize AI Machine Learning projects over general Cloud storage.
•Weerayuth Kanchuchat noted that since the second half of 2025, investment requests in Thailand increased because other ASEAN countries implemented stricter regulations, giving Thailand bargaining power.

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Weerayuth Kanchuchat(วีระยุทธ กาญจน์ชูฉัตร)

A list MP and Deputy Leader of the People's Party.

Ekniti Nitithanprapas(เอกนิติ นิติทัณฑ์ประภาศ)ℹ️

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance who chairs the Data Center Policy Committee.

People's Party(พรรคประชาชน)

The political party of which Weerayuth Kanchuchat is Deputy Leader.

Data Center Policy Committee(คณะกรรมการนโยบายการประกอบกิจการดาต้าเซ็นเตอร์)

The board tasked with overseeing data center operations, chaired by Ekniti Nitithanprapas.

Board of Investment(คณะกรรมการส่งเสริมการลงทุน)

The agency (BOI) that approved 57 data center projects valued at over 811,000 million baht.

A company with investments of hundreds of billions of baht classified as Data Hosting.