The first recorded use of electricity in Thailand was the lighting of the Chakri Maha Prasat Hall of the
Grand Palace on the occasion of the birthday of
King Chulalongkorn on 20 September 1884. The king took a great interest in electricity, particularly its potential for street lighting. In 1897, Luang Pinitjakrapan and Leo Nadee established the Bangkok Electric Light Syndicate to generate and distribute electricity to the citizens of Bangkok. It was later sold as concession to Siam Electricity Co. Ltd., a Danish company led by Aage Westenholz which at the time also operated the
trams. Its main power plant was located at Wat Liap near the Memorial Bridge and thus Wat Liap Power Plant became Thailand's first power plant. A succession of power companies with concomitant name changes followed.
Siam Electricity Company Limited was one such early power company. In 1939 its name was changed to Thailand Electricity Corporation Company Limited. In 1950 its concession expired and it was taken over by the government, renaming it Bangkok Electricity Authority, operating under the aegis of the Interior Ministry. On 1 August 1958 the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) was established by merging the Bangkok Electric Works and the Electrical Division of the Public Works Department to be responsible for providing power supply in Bangkok,
Nonthaburi, and
Samut Prakan. For electricity provision in Thailand's other 74 provinces, it is supplied by the
Provincial Electricity Authority. ==Operations==