Siam Electricity Company

rdf:langString Siam Electricity Company

rdf:langString The Siam Electricity Company Limited was the first power company in Thailand. It provided electricity for Bangkok from its Wat Liap Power Plant throughout the first half of the twentieth century, and also was a major operator of the city's tram system. The company's first inception was in 1889, but it struggled and went bankrupt within a few years. In 1898, a Danish company of the same name was granted a concession for its operations, and the business prospered under the new company. The availability of electricity was expanded throughout the city, as were tram services. The plant was heavily damaged by Allied bombing towards the end of World War II, but was repaired and continued to operate for almost two more decades. The company, which had been renamed Thai Electric Corporation Limited in 1939, operated until 1950, when its concession ended and its operations were nationalized as Bangkok Electric Works. The state enterprise in turn became merged into the Metropolitan Electricity Authority in 1958. The company's original building is being restored and converted into a museum.