Thailand’s Finance Ministry is using funds under an emergency borrowing decree to subsidise the replacement of internal combustion engine (ICE) public service vehicles with electric vehicles (EVs). The proposed support targets intercity buses, taxis and public vans, with the government also considering support for public service vehicles powered by B20 biodiesel.
Under the proposed transition programme, participating vehicles would be required to permanently retire their existing petrol-powered vehicles and deregister them with the Department of Land Transport to prevent their return to service. The Transport Ministry is expected to discuss the retirement requirement, while the Industry Ministry is considering arrangements for dismantling and recycling the vehicles through private companies.
The funding is being drawn from a 400 billion baht emergency borrowing programme introduced in response to the economic impact of the recent energy crisis. Of the total, 200 billion baht has been allocated to economic relief under the “Thai Chuay Thai Plus” programme, while the remaining THB200 billion is intended to support the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. All funds under the borrowing programme are required to be used by September 2027.
The proposed vehicle transition programme is separate from Thailand’s existing EV3.5 support programme, which provides a subsidy of THB50,000 for eligible EV purchases. A broader vehicle scrappage scheme has not yet been approved.