Selling solar power back to the grid in Thailand (PEA) — 2026 guide
Yes, homeowners in Thailand can sell excess rooftop solar to the grid — and a new round of the government scheme just opened. Here's how it works in Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) areas like Phuket, what the buy-back is actually worth, and how to design a system so the numbers work in your favour.
Homeowners in PEA areas can sell excess solar electricity to the grid under the government's rooftop solar scheme (known in Thai as โซลาร์ภาคประชาชน). The 2026 round opened on 1 July 2026 with a buy-back rate of 2.20 THB per unit — but the rate is set per announcement round and can change. Since grid electricity you avoid buying is worth ~4.3 THB per unit, self-consumption is usually worth roughly twice as much as selling. We design systems for self-use first, with sell-back as a bonus — and we handle all the PEA paperwork.
How Thailand's solar buy-back scheme works
Thailand's residential rooftop solar scheme lets households with grid-connected (on-grid) solar systems sell the electricity they produce but don't use back to their utility. In Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi that utility is the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA). Three things to understand before you count on it:
- It only works with an on-grid system. Selling back means feeding electricity into PEA's network, so the system must be grid-connected and formally synchronised with PEA. Off-grid systems can't participate. PEA also swaps or reconfigures your meter so it can measure electricity flowing in both directions.
- You apply through PEA, per round. The scheme opens in announcement rounds — the current one opened on 1 July 2026. Applications go through PEA together with the grid-connection (synchronisation) permission, and each round comes with its own quota and conditions set by the regulator. Eligibility rules and opening windows change from round to round, so always check the latest official announcement.
- It targets homes, not power plants. The scheme is aimed at residential electricity accounts with appropriately sized rooftop systems — for a typical single-phase home connection that means systems up to around 10 kW. Larger commercial systems follow a different track.
In short: selling back is real, but it's the side dish of a solar investment, not the main course. The main return comes from the electricity you stop buying — which the next section puts in numbers.
Net billing, not net metering — and why it changes everything
Two words that decide whether your system design makes sense.
Now the numbers that matter for a home in Phuket:
- 1 unit used yourself = about 4.3 THB you don't pay PEA.
- 1 unit sold back = 2.20 THB under the current round (a rate that is set per announcement and can change).
Every unit you consume directly is worth roughly twice what an exported unit earns. So the winning design is not "biggest roof-full of panels" — it's a system sized so its daytime production lines up with your daytime loads: air-conditioning, pool pumps, water heating, home-office equipment. Whatever is left over flows to the grid and earns the buy-back rate as a bonus. If most of your consumption happens in the evening, battery storage often beats exporting: energy stored at midday and used at night is worth the full ~4.3 THB avoided cost, not the 2.20 THB export rate.
This is exactly the load profile of a pool villa — see our guide to solar for pool villas in Phuket, or if your property is up the coast, solar in Khao Lak & Phang Nga.
Who qualifies, what's needed — and who does the paperwork
Participation runs through PEA and is tied to the property's electricity account. The broad path looks like this:
- 1 · Site survey & load review
We inspect the roof, shading and wiring and review your electricity bills, so the system is sized to your real daytime usage — not oversized for export. - 2 · Design & written savings estimate
A written estimate in THB showing how much you'll self-consume, how much you'd export, and expected payback — in English. - 3 · PEA application — handled for you
We prepare and submit the grid-connection (synchronisation) application, including engineer-certified drawings for PEA permits, and register you for the buy-back scheme while a round is open. - 4 · Meter change & installation
PEA fits a meter that measures electricity in both directions; we install and safety-test the system with coastal-grade equipment. - 5 · Inspection & switch-on
After PEA's inspection the system synchronises with the grid, and exported units start earning under the scheme's terms.
Can a foreign villa owner take part?
The application is tied to whoever holds the property's electricity account — commonly the owner, a Thai company, or the villa's management entity. In practice this means foreign owners can benefit from the scheme through the account that already pays the property's electricity bill. We coordinate directly with owners or villa managers, keep everything documented in English, and are used to working with owners who are abroad most of the year.
Honest caveats
- Quotas: each round has a limited quota — once it fills, applications wait for the next round.
- Rates: the 2.20 THB/unit figure belongs to the 2026 round; future rounds are set by new announcements and may differ. Never build a long-term financial model on the buy-back rate alone.
- Timelines: approval times vary by office and application volume — typically weeks to a few months. A well-prepared application avoids the most common delays, which is a big part of why we handle it for our customers.
Designed for self-consumption first, a Phuket rooftop system stands on its own economics — the buy-back is upside, not the foundation. That's the honest way to size it, and it's how we quote.
Selling solar power back — common questions
What is the solar buy-back rate in Thailand right now?
The 2026 round of the government's residential rooftop solar scheme opened on 1 July 2026 with a buy-back rate of 2.20 THB per unit (kWh) for excess electricity exported to the grid in PEA areas. Important: the rate is set per announcement round by the regulator and can change from round to round, so always confirm the current announcement before building it into your calculations.
Is Thailand net metering or net billing?
Net billing. Under net metering, each unit you export offsets a unit you import at full value. Thailand's scheme instead pays a fixed buy-back rate for exported units (2.20 THB/unit in the 2026 round) while you continue to pay the normal tariff — around 4.3 THB/unit — for electricity you draw from the grid. That gap is why using your own solar power directly is worth roughly twice as much as selling it.
Is it worth oversizing my solar system just to sell electricity?
Usually not. Because exported units earn 2.20 THB while self-consumed units save around 4.3 THB, a system sized mainly for export earns a much weaker return than one sized to cover your daytime consumption. The best design covers your daytime loads first, treats the buy-back as a bonus on the leftover, and — if your evening usage is high — adds battery storage, which captures full-tariff value instead of the lower export rate.
How long does PEA approval take?
It varies. Grid-connection permission and scheme registration go through the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) and the energy regulator, and processing times differ by office, application volume and round — typically it is a matter of weeks to a few months rather than days. We prepare and submit the paperwork as part of every installation and track the application for you, so you always know where it stands.
Do you handle the paperwork for selling electricity back?
Yes. We prepare and submit the full PEA application package — grid-connection (synchronisation) permission, engineer-certified drawings for PEA permits, and registration for the buy-back scheme when a round is open — as part of every installation. For overseas owners we coordinate with your villa manager, since the application is tied to the property's electricity account.
New to solar in Phuket? Start from our English home page for costs, payback and how we work.
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Pearl Solar Energy Co., Ltd. · 19/27 Moo 2, Wichit, Mueang Phuket, Phuket 83000 · Mon–Sat 08:00–17:00