KARACHI: Pakistan Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Dealers Association Chairman Abdul Sami Khan announced on Monday that dealers will be left with no choice but to shut their business if CNG prices are increased in the upcoming budget. He added that an increase of Rs11.50 in Gas Infrastructure Development surcharge cess will make it unaffordable for the consumers. He said that if the industry closes down, 300,000 workers will become redundant fuelling the critical unemployment situation in the country.
Quoting a survey, he said that carbon emissions have decreased up to 61% in Lahore and Karachi due to the use of CNG. CNG being an environmentally friendly fuel, if disbanded, will significantly boost pollution levels. Khan apprised during the press conference that in India and United States, CNG is being promoted through offering handsome subsidies to consumers and producers.
CNG associations on Monday held press conferences at various press clubs all over the country including Peshawar and Karachi.
All Pakistan CNG Association (APCNGA) Chairman Ghyas Piracha told the media that the body has repeatedly requested the ministry of petroleum to revoke three days load shedding of gas and not to impose taxes on CNG sector. However, the ministry failed to respond therefore forcing the association to stage protests and take steps to save the CNG industry.
Piracha stated that the government seeks to promote Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in the country even though it is not feasible and it will take at minimum four years to install LPG kits in the CNG running vehicles. Piracha alleged that few influential people are promoting LPG businesses by importing substandard LPG in the country.
He added that APCNGA has given a comprehensive plan to the government to enhance revenue and to control the widening energy crises in the country.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 29th, 2012.
COMMENTS (3)
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should have stopped investing into this CNG long time before and should have invested this money into public transport which could give cheap commutation to the general public, CNG is total waste of resources, before CNG i rarely used to turn on my car AC but after CNG i am always using AC as it is cheap, but cheap it is and we have burned most of it for nothing.
The poor and the lower middle class running 2 wheelers would not be affected if CNG goes out. The only ones affected are those running motor vehicles and they can always shift to regular petrol. If you can afford a car you should be able to afford the petrol; albeit lesser quantity of it, meaning they will have to economize their travel. Finally with regards to the Rickshaw drivers they will pass the buck to the customer.
The claim of CNG being environmentally friendly is dubious as when burned as fuel in a car it quite a lot less efficient then petrol. A full cylinder which might last for 100KM (i.e. 2-3 days of City Driving) will last more than a month if it was used for cooking.
That would be great if they really mean it, since CNG is an unnecessary burden on the limited natural gas reserves that Pakistan has and should be closed for good!