SINGAPORE - Transport giant ComfortDelGro has won three bus contracts worth A$1.7 billion (S$1.5 billion) in Sydney, Australia.

In an announcement on Monday morning, the Singapore-listed firm said that, through its indirect subsidiary ComfortDelGro New South Wales, it clinched new Greater Sydney bus contracts to operate in two regions in Sydney.

The Greater Sydney bus contracts tendered will allow the group, which runs buses, trains and taxis in Singapore, to operate in region 4 and region 14, the latter soon combining with region 12.

The contract to operate in region 4 will take effect in April 2023 and is valid for eight years, while the contracts for region 14 will take effect in May 2023 for seven years.

Home to over 700 buses that transport 18 million passengers each year, the areas covered by ComfortDelGro include Sydney’s northern and north-west suburbs and the northern beaches, making up a significant part of the city’s public transport network.

ComfortDelGro deputy chief executive Cheng Siak Kian said the group has been operating in Australia for 17 years.

“Australia is, and continues to be, a significant part of our business and we will continue to look at opportunities to expand even further,” he added.

These awarded contracts come hot on the heels of another successful tender in the Northern Territory of Australia, where ComfortDelGro became the sole operator of public transport bus services in the cities of Darwin and Palmerston, and in other rural areas, with a total fleet of over 220 buses.

ComfortDelGro entered the Australia market in 2005. Its subsidiary ComfortDelGro Corporation Australia currently operates in six states and territories with a fleet of over 3,000 vehicles, representing 35 per cent of the group’s total fleet.