Safety hazard: As a precaution, OGRA stops gas supply to 350 CNG stations
Stations were operating in residential areas and posing a threat to people’s safety.
Stations were operating in residential areas and posing a threat to people’s safety. CREATIVE COMMONS
ISLAMABAD:
The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has cut off gas supply to 350 compressed natural gas (CNG) stations which were found to be close to mosques, hospitals and schools in residential areas, in a move taken to ensure safety of people.
“We have disconnected gas supply to 350 CNG stations, which were earlier served with show cause notices,” Ogra Chairman Saeed Khan told The Express Tribune. These filling stations were adjacent to mosques, hospitals and schools, he said.
Other Ogra officials said licences of these CNG stations would also be revoked to prevent accidents, if any, from causing loss to life and property in these areas.
The country has also been facing gas shortage for the past many years and the government is now paying attention to giving priority to power plants in gas supply.
An association of CNG station owners argues that the regulator, in a bid to justify the closure of filling stations in residential areas, issued show cause notices to over 1,000 station operators before shutting off gas. This is going to result in closure of hundreds of stations running in residential areas across the country, they say.
The All Pakistan CNG Association insists that all petrol pump and CNG operators took no-objection certificates from 12 different departments under the policy of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources before kicking off commercial operations.
At present, over 3,000 CNG stations are selling gas in the country and most of them are in residential areas.
A senior Ogra official said provincial governments were also involved in setting up CNG stations close to mosques, hospitals and schools. He said the regulator had studied buildings act of provinces and noted that laws were changed at different times.
Several filling stations running close to mosques, hospitals and schools have been identified in Karachi, but no such station was found in Hyderabad. More reports about CNG stations in residential areas are being collected.
The official insisted that the notices were issued in line with rules and regulations and the station operators should give the rationale behind setting up CNG pumps in residential areas. “If they fail to justify, their licences will be cancelled,” he added.
In the show cause notices, CNG operators were asked to explain under which policy they had established outlets in residential localities and what measures they had taken to ensure safety of people living around.
Ogra has already directed relevant authorities to launch a crackdown on vehicles fitted with uncertified CNG and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders.
The regulator also imposed a ban in May on CNG consumption in those wagons that had gas cylinder beneath passenger seats. However, this restriction does not apply to vehicles plying with cylinder placed on their roof.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources has proposed that CNG prices should be increased to 85% of petrol price in order to discourage its consumption in automobiles. The government has yet to take a decision on the proposal.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 7th, 2013.
The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has cut off gas supply to 350 compressed natural gas (CNG) stations which were found to be close to mosques, hospitals and schools in residential areas, in a move taken to ensure safety of people.
“We have disconnected gas supply to 350 CNG stations, which were earlier served with show cause notices,” Ogra Chairman Saeed Khan told The Express Tribune. These filling stations were adjacent to mosques, hospitals and schools, he said.
Other Ogra officials said licences of these CNG stations would also be revoked to prevent accidents, if any, from causing loss to life and property in these areas.
The country has also been facing gas shortage for the past many years and the government is now paying attention to giving priority to power plants in gas supply.
An association of CNG station owners argues that the regulator, in a bid to justify the closure of filling stations in residential areas, issued show cause notices to over 1,000 station operators before shutting off gas. This is going to result in closure of hundreds of stations running in residential areas across the country, they say.
The All Pakistan CNG Association insists that all petrol pump and CNG operators took no-objection certificates from 12 different departments under the policy of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources before kicking off commercial operations.
At present, over 3,000 CNG stations are selling gas in the country and most of them are in residential areas.
A senior Ogra official said provincial governments were also involved in setting up CNG stations close to mosques, hospitals and schools. He said the regulator had studied buildings act of provinces and noted that laws were changed at different times.
Several filling stations running close to mosques, hospitals and schools have been identified in Karachi, but no such station was found in Hyderabad. More reports about CNG stations in residential areas are being collected.
The official insisted that the notices were issued in line with rules and regulations and the station operators should give the rationale behind setting up CNG pumps in residential areas. “If they fail to justify, their licences will be cancelled,” he added.
In the show cause notices, CNG operators were asked to explain under which policy they had established outlets in residential localities and what measures they had taken to ensure safety of people living around.
Ogra has already directed relevant authorities to launch a crackdown on vehicles fitted with uncertified CNG and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders.
The regulator also imposed a ban in May on CNG consumption in those wagons that had gas cylinder beneath passenger seats. However, this restriction does not apply to vehicles plying with cylinder placed on their roof.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources has proposed that CNG prices should be increased to 85% of petrol price in order to discourage its consumption in automobiles. The government has yet to take a decision on the proposal.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 7th, 2013.