A helping hand: A transport ministry staff member holding the brochure on the transition assistance programme. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
PETALING JAYA: Stakeholders say that the use of all natural gas vehicles (NGVs) has already been phased out over the past five years for both commercial and private vehicles due to the limited availability of filling stations.
As a result, the impending ban on NGVs is not expected to have a significant impact, especially on taxis, which have also ceased using them, according to Datuk Mohamad Ashfar Ali, president of the Pan Malaysian Bus Operators Association.
“As far as I’m concerned, very few public service vehicles are still using gas, with most users being private-owned vehicles. Some of the main reasons for this decline include rising tank costs due to increased metal prices and the limited availability of NGV gas – only PETRONAS supplies it, while other oil companies do not.
“As a result, there have been long queues, with wait times of 20 to 30 minutes to fill up, which takes up a lot of time on a daily basis. This situation is now similar to the current experience with electric vehicle (EV) charging stations,” said Mohamad Ashafar.
With the ban in place, Steven Chong, president of the Peninsular Malaysia Tour Bus Operators’ Association, said that it is timely for the government to consider reducing the prices of electric vehicles (EVs) as they remain unaffordable for the general public.
“I believe they offered some schemes for taxis when they bought their vehicles. So we will have to wait and see what happens with this move,” said Chong.
“To continue supporting the green initiative, it is essential to lower the prices of electric vehicles (EVs) and ensure there are enough charging stations available. While this (NGV) ban may impact costs for several months, I believe that things will eventually stabilise, so I don’t anticipate a significant long-term effect from the ban,” he added.
Kamarudin Hussain, president of Gabungan Teksi Malaysia, praised Loke’s bold decision, describing it as more dignified than PETRONAS’ previous action of quietly halting NGV fuel sales.
He noted that this action left many of their members impacted, forcing them to remove the NGV system from their taxis without any compensation.
“For the past six to seven years, we have been aware of PETRONAS’ intention to stop selling NGV fuel.
“We understand that they cannot continue due to significant losses and the safety concerns associated with the spare parts for their pumps.
“The minister’s announcement reflects the true state of NGV fuel sales lifespan in this country for service and transport use.
“We are confident that our fuel costs will remain manageable with the subsidies that will be implemented later,” said Kamarudin, also expressing appreciation for the RM3,000 fuel voucher.
