Thailand plans to buy 3,000 natural gas-fueled buses

Thailand’s Transport Ministry will ask the cabinet to approve its plan to buy more than 3,000 natural gas-fuelled buses to be used for the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA); this endeavor will cost THB13 billion (US$413.68 million). The Bangkok Post reported that the BMTA will use the money earned from bus fees to pay back the debt within a period of 10 years. Deputy Transport Minister Chadchart Sittiphan said that during the 10-year period, the agency will reorganize itself with the goal of becoming financially self-supporting. The minister emphasized that the bus prices in the proposal were tentative, and that the actual prices would be determined during the bidding process. He also explained that using buses capable of running on natural gas would amount to savings of about THB3.6 billion (US$114.55 million) a year, compared to using buses which run on petrol or diesel fuel. The ministry also envisions that THB297 million (US$9.4 million) in maintenance costs could be avoided if it enters into a long-term agreement for bus maintenance. (May 15, 2012)