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Petroleum Act Section 23 — State ownership and the licensing requirement
Petroleum Act (พระราชบัญญัติปิโตรเลียม) — Section 23.
Plain-English Summary
Section 23 provides that petroleum belongs to the State. Anyone who explores for or produces petroleum anywhere, whether on their own land or someone else's, must hold a concession, a production-sharing contract or a service contract; applying for and obtaining production-sharing rights follows Chapter 3/1 and obtaining a service contract follows Chapter 3/2. An application for a concession must follow the criteria, procedure and conditions set in a ministerial regulation, and the form of concession is also set by ministerial regulation. Which form (concession, production-sharing contract or service contract) is suitable for a given area is decided under criteria the Petroleum Committee announces in the Royal Gazette with Cabinet approval. Breach of the first paragraph is an offence under Section 103.
Official Text
Official Thai text at the Royal Gazette / Office of the Council of State. Translation summary only.
Consult official sourceParent Statute
Petroleum Act
พระราชบัญญัติปิโตรเลียม · B.E. 2514 (1971)
The Petroleum Act B.E. 2514 (1971) governs the upstream petroleum industry. It declares petroleum to belong to the State and requires anyone exploring or producing it to hold a concession, a production-sharing contract or a service contract (Section 23). It regulates exploration blocks and production areas, the Petroleum Committee, royalty, the special remuneratory benefit, decommissioning and penalties, and gives a role to the Department of Mineral Fuels. Petroleum income is taxed under the separate law on petroleum income tax, which the Act cross-refers to.
The summary above is a plain-English educational paraphrase of Section 23 of the Petroleum Act. It is not an authoritative translation. For the binding Thai text, consult the Royal Gazette or the Office of the Council of State. Educational use only — not a substitute for advice from a Thai-qualified lawyer.
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