

The oil industry in Thailand is dominated by PTT, formerly the Petroleum Authority of Thailand. PTT Exploration and Production(PTTEP) is the main upstream subsidiary of PTT. Exploration and production activities are undertaken by PTT's. Also, PTT is a major shareholder in two refining companies. Although Thailand has some oil reserves but its not sufficient to meet its needs. Thailand is net importer of oil, but the government is promoting the use of ethanol in order to reduce the import of petroleum and natural gas.
Thailand oil industry and oil companies perform functions such as exploration, drilling, pipe laying and transport to the refining and eventual sale of finished petroleum products.

Petrochemicals are chemical products derived from petroleum. So chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels such as coal or natural gas, or renewable sources such as corn or sugarcane. Petrochemicals are divided into two groups according to their chemical structure namely olefins and aromatics. Some of the olefins are propylene and ethylene while benzene and xylene are the aromatics. The petrochemical industry began in Thailand about fifty years. At that time the petrochemical industry was totally dependent on imports. But when natural gas reserves were found this really was a major boost up for the industry. Today the Thai petrochemical industry has tremendously grown and is considered to be the fifth best in the region. Thailand exports some of the major polymers to the foreign countries. Growths in other industries in have helped in the growth of the petrochemical industry.