The government has taken initiatives to popularise the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in motor vehicles instead of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as the reserve of the latter is depleting.
“LPG will be used in motor vehicles and households as the reserve of CNG is limited in the country,” said an additional secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division.
“It is costly to run cars using octane or petrol, which is why car owners in the developed countries are using LPG,” he added.
LPG consists mainly of propane and butane in various mixtures of hydrocarbon gases used as fuel in heating appliances, cooking equipment, and vehicles. It is produced as a by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Division has also held an inter-ministerial meeting with the aim of finding ways to increase the use of LPG as car fuel.
The meeting discussed how to make the use of LPG as car fuel more popular and reduce the use of CNG. In order to discourage car owners to use CNG in cars, the meeting decided to increase tariffs on CNG.
The option of withdrawing duties on the import of LPG conversion kits was also discussed at the meeting.
The use of LPG in cars is increasing gradually across the world, said an official at the Energy and Mineral Resources Division, adding: “This is because fuel cost will go down by 40% if LPG is used instead of CNG.”
“We welcome the initiative but the government should allow the existing CNG stations to operate. It should also allow selling LPG as car fuel for those who want to be in this business in the future,” CNG Filling Station and Conversion Workshop Owners Association Secretary Farhan Noor told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
“We demand that the government provides subsidies for the motor fuel business. It should also simplify the system and remove the obstacles entrepreneurs face while starting the business. At present, acquiring lands, obtaining licence from the Department of Explosives and importing LPG entail many difficulties,” Petredec Elpiji Ltd Director and CEO Mohammed Saidul Islam told the Dhaka tribune.
Rupantarita Prakritik Gas Company Limited (RPGCL) Managing Director Md Mahbub Sarwar said: “We will urge the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to cut tariffs and VAT imposed on LPG-related products. There will be no need to set up more filling stations to meet the demand for LPG.”
Several LPG filling stations have already been set up in Jessore and Khulna.
“RPGCL will do a study on using LPG in motor vehicles and will submit a report to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources,” said a high official of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division.
“The Department of Explosives has been asked to draft a law on the use of LPG as car fuel. Also, RPGCL has been asked to submit a document detailing the benefits of the use of LPG,” he added.