Injection of COEs offers flexibility to boost supply ahead of peak: Chee

Move should help moderate prices, but this will also depend on demand, says minister

- Kok Yufeng

An injection of up to 20,000 more certificates of entitlement (COEs) over the next few years will allow the authorities to better meet an earlier promise of increasing COE supply before a projected peak in 2026, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat told Parliament.

Mr Chee said this on Nov 12 in response to questions from MPs on both sides of the political aisle about the Land Transport Authority's (LTA) recent announcement that it would increase Singapore's vehicle population by up to 2 per cent of current levels from February 2025 amid a shift in travel patterns.

"We had earlier said that the COE quota for categories A, B and C will continue to increase every quarter before reaching the projected peak supply from 2026," Mr Chee said, referring to earlier moves to fill supply troughs by redistributing COEs due to expire in future.

"The additional COEs will give us more flexibility to meet this commitment, and further increase the COE supply in the next few quarters before we reach the peak supply," he added.

Workers' Party MP Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) asked Mr Chee if the injection was a firmer commitment by the Ministry of Transport to eliminate the "feast-and-famine volatility" of COE premiums.

Replying, Mr Chee said the move will aid LTA's efforts to further flatten the COE supply curve.

As more COEs are added to the pool, LTA will continue to monitor traffic conditions and adjust Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) charges where necessary to keep congestion in check, he added.