KUALA LUMPUR: Fewer than 8,000 sport utility vehicle (SUV) and pickup owners used up their full 400-litre monthly BUDI Diesel entitlement in September, says the Finance Ministry.
The ministry said this was about 7% of SUV and pickup owners nationwide.
"This shows that the current approach has taken into account the actual needs of users, including in Sarawak, which depends on four-wheel-drive vehicles for daily use, without the need for a blanket quota exemption," it said in a written parliamentary reply on Thursday (Oct 8).
BUDI Diesel, which sells diesel at RM2.10 a litre to eligible Malaysians through MyKad verification, was rolled out in stages from June 27 and nationwide from July 1.
The base entitlement was raised to 300 litres a month from September, and owners of eligible jeeps and pickups can apply for an extra 100 litres.
The ministry said Sarawak had nearly 110,000 registered SUV and pickup owners, about 40% of whom could qualify for the extra entitlement.
From Sept 16, registered owners can transfer their entitlement to anyone who actually uses the vehicle. Previously, transfers were limited to immediate family.
Owners of more than one private diesel vehicle can transfer their entitlements to a maximum of three other people.
The ministry said boat operators and residents in the interior who use diesel for gensets and water pumps were being considered for BUDI Diesel, subject to verification by the state government and agencies such as Resident and District Offices.
It was in reply to Saratok MP Datuk Ali Biju, who asked whether the Government would exempt private diesel users in Sarawak from the monthly quota, citing the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), the state's status as a major petroleum producer and its geography.
In a separate reply, the ministry said subsidies for petrol, diesel and LPG, which cost about RM800mil a month in January and February, jumped to almost RM5bil a month in March and April after the West Asia conflict pushed crude oil above US$120 a barrel.
The subsidy bill eased to about RM3bil a month from June to August, it said, adding that the Government still expects to spend RM40bil on petroleum product subsidies this year.
The RM40bil projection was first disclosed in July, when the Government said the amount was more than double the RM15bil allocated under Budget 2026.
The ministry was replying to Mohd Syahir Che Sulaiman (PN-Bachok).
Budget 2027 will be tabled on Friday.
