Revenue Rolls in as Vehicles Roll On
More than seven million vehicles have been registered in the last 33 years. Photo: Thmey Thmey
- By Teng Yalirozy
- February 28, 2024 7:00 PM
PHNOM PENH – More than seven million vehicles have been registered in the last 33 years, while $85 million have been earned from special and personalized license plates, according to the Ministry of Transport.
Since 1990, the Public Work and Transport Ministry has registered 7,563,395 vehicles, of which 6,416,230 were motorcycles, 845,626 were light vehicles and 301 539 were heavy vehicles.
In 2023, 652,123 vehicles, including 604 electric vehicles, were registered. Of these, 542,401 were motorcycles, 96,774 were light vehicles and 12, 988 were heavy vehicles.
From 2019 to 2023, the ministry generated 347,627 million riel (about $85 million) from special and personalized license plates.
The ministry earned about $16 million from special and personalized license plates for 26,659 vehicles in 2023.
Transport Minister Peng Ponea said of the $16 million, about $9 million came from the registration of 5,298 special personalized license plates and the rest was from 21,361 special license plates.
Personalized plates feature Khmer script "Kampuchea" and English "Cambodia" with Latin numbers or letters in the middle, and a QR code on the right side with vehicle information.
The special plate has the word “Phnom Penh” or the name of a province issued in the Khmer language at the top and in Latin at the bottom.
The plate begins with one digit, which depends on the type of vehicle and is followed by one or two Latin letters and four digits.
The ministry launched personalized vehicle plates to generate revenue and provide tailored options for interested individuals in 2020. However, the ministry started selling the special number plates based on an order by the minister and the Ministry of Finance in 2017.
