KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 4): The monthly quota for subsidised RON95 petrol for eligible e-hailing drivers will be increased again to 800 litres, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced on Tuesday.
The decision follows a review of appeals and actual fuel usage patterns among active 58,000 e-hailing drivers, Anwar said during the prime minister’s question time in Parliament. The government had earlier raised the limit to 600 litres in October from 300 litres.
“After assessing real-world needs, the government has agreed to further raise the limit to 800 litres per month, subject to travel conditions,” he said.
Airport taxis will also be included under the subsidised petrol control scheme and allowed to receive RON95 at subsidised prices.
But the 800 litres is not a flat quota that applies to all e-hailing drivers. According to a statement form the Ministry of Finance shortly after Anwar's announcement, the subsidised fuel programme for e-hailing drivers will be based on a tiered system, as opposed to the flat-rate previously.
The 800-litre quota is only for e-hailing drivers who travel more than 5,000km per month. Those who travel between 2,000-5,000km will get 600 litres of subsidised fuel, while those who travel less than 2,000km a month will get only 300 litres.
This tiered-system will be activated by the middle of each month. The level of increase in the Budi95 monthly eligibility ceiling depends on the e-hailing travel distance recorded in the e-hailing operator's system for the preceding month.
Malaysia rolled out its targeted RON95 subsidy programme known as Budi95 that allows citizens to purchase up to 300 litres of the most widely used fuel each month at a subsidised price of RM1.99 per litre beginning Sept 30.
From the first month of implementation, 13.1 million Malaysians have carried out transactions worth RM2.6 billion in subsidised petrol, with government expenditure totalling about RM800 million.
The average Budi95 recipient used 98 litres of petrol in October — roughly one-third of the 300-litre monthly limit — while only 0.7% of users fully utilised their quota, Anwar noted.
The government will continue to monitor usage patterns and make adjustments where necessary to strengthen the targeted RON95 subsidy’s implementation, while taking enforcement action against any misuse, he added.
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