Rationale for Excluding Heavy Goods Vehicles and Very Heavy Goods Vehicles from Commercial Vehicle Emissions Scheme

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) what is the rationale for excluding Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) and Very Heavy Goods Vehicle (VHGV) from the Commercial Vehicle Emissions Scheme (CVES); and (b) whether the Ministry will consider harmonising the CVES to encompass all commercial vehicles.

The Commercial Vehicle Emissions Scheme (CVES) promotes the adoption of cleaner new light commercial vehicles by providing an incentive of up to $30,000 for the purchase of cleaner models, whilst imposing a $10,000 surcharge to discourage the purchase of more pollutive models. Cleaner Light Goods Vehicle (LGV) models, such as petrol and electric ones, are readily available in the market.

The scheme currently covers LGVs with maximum laden weight not exceeding 3,500 kilogramme. This is because cleaner and market-ready alternatives for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) and Very Heavy Goods Vehicles (VHGV) are still limited. Availability of market-ready cleaner alternatives is an important factor for the scheme to be effective in shifting purchase decisions towards cleaner models.

We will continue to monitor the availability of cleaner HGV and VHGV models in the Singapore and international markets, and will consider expanding the CVES to cover more commercial vehicles in future.