NGV fuel-card plan needs fine-tuning if target drivers to get maximum gain
The Energy Ministry accepts that it needs to set out its fuel credit-card plan meticulously in order to ensure the measure brings maximum benefit to low-income NGV-taxi drivers.
A ministry source yesterday said the cards are aimed at easing the burden on low-income drivers of public vans, taxis and tuk-tuks after the flotation of NGV (natural gas for vehicles) prices in January.
According to the preliminary plan, drivers would have to register with the ministry to show that they are drivers of qualifying vehicle types, or the genuine owners of the vehicles, in order to get the cards. The ministry is considering how to prevent those who are not genuine drivers or owners from illegally reaping benefits from the scheme.
It has yet to finalise the monthly credit value in the cards, which could be either Bt2,000, Bt3,000 or Bt4,000.
The source added that PTT had proposed that the cards should be in the form of discount cards, which holders would show at NGV gas stations to pay for the fuel at the present subsidised rate, regardless of the actual price following January’s float.
However, the ministry might go for its own option, namely that it would estimate the monthly NGV cost for drivers and then give such a fixed value in the cards each month.
Under this option, cardholders would pay for NGV at the actual market retail price by using the cards. If they used up the card value before the end of the month, they would have to pay for the gas out of their own pocket, the source said.
It is estimated that a taxi consumes 1,000 kilograms of NGV per month. There are around 59,000 NGV taxis, 5,000 NGV public vans and 1,700 NGV tuk-tuks around the country.
The ministry is also considering how the card value will be topped up, and whether users can transfer any remaining value onto the next month’s amount.
A key issue to be decided is the source of funding for the value in the cards. This could be either from the government budget or from the Oil Fund, the source said.
PTT has proposed that the ministry should initially promote the cards on NGV taxis and public vans in greater Bangkok. The company would install the system for card use in its 200 NGV stations in that area, out of its 447 stations nationwide.
Suthep Liumsirijarern, director-general of the Energy Policy and Planning Office, said that if the NGV price increased by Bt2 per kilogram, this would reduce the Oil Fund burden from subsidising NGV prices to Bt300 million a month from the current Bt400 million.
The Oil Fund could then use the difference of Bt100 million a month to subsidise the cost of the card value, he said.
