By Aye Nyein Win | Tuesday, 02 May 2017
Yangon Bus Public Company (YBPC) will spend K70 billion, which is entrusted at the Ayeyarwady Bank, for acquiring new buses, according to the regional minister for finance and planning U Myint Thaung.
Regional MP Daw Sandar Min (NLD; Seikgyi Khanaungto 1), who is also chair of parliamentary committee for planning and financing, asked how the K70 billion budget will be used and how profits will be allocated to private firms involved in the projects. She also requested the regional government to present a business plan to the Yangon Region parliament on April 28.
The Yangon Region government has asked for K70 billion as part of its budget in 2016-17 fiscal year.
The financial resources are planned to be used to upgrade the public transport system and gradually replace old buses with brand new vehicles. The parliament has approved the budgetary request.
“The Yangon Regional government has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding [MOU] with China to purchase 1000 new buses through a government-to-government plan on March 2017,” said U Myint Thaung.
The YBPC has signed an agreement with a Chinese firm to buy 1000 buses in April 2017. The YBPC has spent US$56,000 on each bus.
To solve Yangon’s notoriously congested traffic, the former government implemented the YBPC. Bus fares were K300 but became K200 when YBPC joined with the new YBS.
Although the YBPC lost profits when they reduced their fares to K200 from K300, their profits actually increased, according to Yangon Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein in January 2017.
YBPC is a public-private partnership (PPP), which was set up with K10 billion from the government and K2.5 million from five private companies, but they can only run on two main routes for the first phase. Within the first two weeks of 2016, public buses were owned by individually except for the YBPC.
“For share allocations, the YBPC will act in accordance with the firm’s PPP system.
“As the buses are brand new, it will be feasible to save maintenance and repair costs and hopefully achieve a return capital within three to five years,” the minister added.
When implementing the YBS, the government was criticised by commuters because there were not enough vehicles to run the system effectively. A lot of commuters, as a result, were severely affected.
“We will fulfil [our goal] with a new business [plan] in order to support the YBS and replace old buses.
“According to the procedures of a company’s PPP, they will make a public announcement at the next annual meeting regarding a new business plan,” said U Myint Thaung.
Ref: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/25818-ybpc-to-acquire-new-buses-with-k70-billion.html