Thailand has suspended the construction of 49 data centers amid public concerns over high power consumption and other impacts on the community, Bloomberg reported today. The announcement was made by Danucha Pichayanan, secretary-general of the National Economic and Social Development Council.
Danucha added that the suspension would allow time for officials to develop new industry regulations for a more sustainable data center operating environment. The new regulations are expected to be announced in a month.
“Today’s decision doesn’t mean Thailand is closing the door to data-center investment because the industry is critical to the country’s competitiveness. We simply want clear and consistent standards in place to ensure the industry can grow sustainably,” Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas reportedly said.
Thailand will also come up with uniform oversight of data centers in operation as well as those being developed, Danucha said.
In May, the Board of Investment (BOI) approved TikTok System (Thailand)’s data infrastructure expansion. The government has approved a total of 88 projects with a total investment of 886 billion baht (US$27 billion) related to artificial intelligence and data centers in the first six months of the year, according to the BOI’s data. This has already surpassed the 623 billion baht recorded for all of 2025.
Earlier, concerns emerged in Bangkok after three facilities were found to be built next to a hospital prompting the city to suspend the construction of the three facilities.
Thailand is also weighing raising electricity rates for large DC operators.