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Advancing commercial EV implementation through student transportation electrification

PrimeMobility Co., Ltd. (“Prime Mobility”) is supporting the electrification of school bus operations by Montri Transport Corporation Public Company Limited (“Montri”), a Thai transport operator providing school and employee shuttle services.

On March 16, 2026, PrimeMobility entered into a fleet management agreement covering three school buses with Montri. The vehicles introduced under the project are Farizon P6M, an 11-seat electric van under the commercial vehicle brand Farizon of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd.. The vehicles are being deployed for student transportation services for the International School Bangkok (ISB), with pilot operations starting in April 2026.

Under this initiative, PrimeMobility provides a comprehensive fleet management service that includes vehicle procurement, leasing, vehicle operation management, maintenance, and battery degradation analysis and forecasting.

Montri currently operates approximately 750 internal combustion engine vehicles in Thailand, of which about 550 are vans used for school and employee transportation. Montri plans to use the initial three-vehicle deployment to assess operational suitability and vehicle performance, with a view toward expanding EV adoption further. Montri is considering the introduction of 100 EVs during 2026.

School transportation is considered well suited to EV adoption because routes and daily driving distances are relatively predictable, and depot-based charging is easier to implement. Initial operating tests indicate that EV charging costs were approximately 60–70% lower than diesel fuel costs, suggesting potential for both CO2 emissions reduction and lower operating costs.

Montri explains the reason for introducing EVs as “emphasizing the safety, health, and environmental responsibility of students” and stated that it leads to a reduction in air pollution and noise around the school. ISB also said that it is interested in introducing vehicles with lower environmental impact on the premise of maintaining service quality such as safety and punctual operation.

Going forward, PrimeMobility will continue supporting the practical implementation of commercial EVs in Thailand, with a focus on high-public-interest transportation sectors.

PrimeMobility and Panasonic Holdings will launch a diagnostic service for electric-vehicle batteries in Thailand as soon as 2026, eyeing the growing number of commercial EVs in the Southeast Asian nation.

The main objective is to help maintain commercial fleets by detecting battery degradation and abnormalities before they lead to vehicle problems.

The technology will be built into commercial fleet management systems maintained by PrimeMobility, which was established in January by 3 parties: Marubeni Corporation, Banpu NEXT and Fuyo Lease Group. The service will be geared mainly toward such commercial vehicles as large trucks and pickup trucks.

EV battery charging capacity decreases over time, which can lead to a shorter range from each charge. The new service will aim to relieve customer anxiety about range, battery fires and other problems. Panasonic’s track record includes battery analysis for a total of roughly 150,000vehicles both in Japan and elsewhere.