The Government will be sacrificing up to $100 million a year in lost revenue from diesel duty when minibuses switch to LPG.
However, an environmental group said the loss was worth bearing to improve Hong Kong's air quality.
The figure was calculated by minibus operators based on average consumption of 50 litres of diesel a day for the SAR's 4,350 public minibuses, and about 16 litres a day for the 2,000 private minibuses. Diesel is taxed at $1.10 a litre, while LPG carries no duty.
In addition to the tax loss, the Government might also have to sacrifice up to $20 million by waiving a year's registration fee for private minibuses which switch to LPG.
Officials estimate that after the switch, the amount of breathable pollution particles in the air will be cut by 3.6 per cent by 2005, while nitrogen oxide will fall 1.4 per cent. The estimates are slightly lower than the targets of four per cent and two per cent cuts respectively set by Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa.
Lily Yam Kwan Pui-ying, the Secretary for Environment and Food, said the estimates fell short of the targets because owners of up to 1,400 minibuses might choose to continue using diesel.
