Bangkok’s EV bus procurement plan delayed pending cabinet approval
The government aims to replace all combustion-engine buses with clean energy alternatives by 2029
The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) on Thursday announced that the signing of procurement contract for 1,520 electric air-conditioned buses, originally scheduled this month, must be pushed back until Cabinet approval is granted.
BMTA director Kittikan Chomdoung Charuworapolkul said the project aims to lease 1,520 EV buses, valued at 15.355 billion baht, for a 7-year term instead of buying NGV (natural gas for vehicles) buses, which is the original cabinet’s resolution.
Once the project is approved, BMTA will proceed with the bidding process and contract signing within 55 days, she said.
The first batch of 500 EV buses is expected to be delivered later this year, approximately 180–200 days after contract signing. The second phase of deliveries is expected to take an additional 3–6 months, added Kittikan.
The director also reported that despite BMTA’s accumulated debt of 150 billion baht, its 2024 financial performance has improved, with annual losses reduced to 2.9 billion baht from the previous average of 5 billion baht. This improvement is attributed to revised route management plans and government-approved funding for the new EV buses, which effectively made the procurement cost-neutral.
Kittikan added that further financial relief came from BMTA’s legal victory over several companies involved in a previous NGV bus procurement. The Supreme Administrative Court ordered Bestrin Group, R&A Commercial Vehicles Sdn Bhd, Sunlong (Shanghai) Automotive, and Beifang Guangzhou New Energy Technology to pay 520 million baht in damages. These companies breached TOR conditions by falsely declaring the origin of the imported buses to avoid import duties, violating ASEAN Free Trade Agreement regulations. BMTA lawfully canceled the contract for 489 NGV buses as a result.
The government aims to replace all combustion-engine buses with clean energy alternatives by 2029. The target includes phasing out approximately 2,300 old buses, with a goal to reduce diesel-powered vehicles by 60%. The EV bus project is expected to significantly cut operational costs, as electricity for EV buses is three times cheaper than diesel, and maintenance is included in the lease agreement.
By 2028, the BMTA anticipates that non-air-conditioned buses will no longer operate on regular routes. Older buses that remain serviceable may be retained as backup fleet under private leasing agreements.
Currently, BMTA operates 2,884 buses, of which about 95% are in service. This fleet includes 1,520 non-air-conditioned buses and over 1,300 air-conditioned buses, around 800 of which are already powered by clean energy.
