Mirpur CNG stations not getting optimum pressure
City Correspondent
Compressed natural gas (CNG) stations in Mirpur area are still not receiving the optimum gas pressure from Titas Gas between 12pm to 2pm every day. As a result, most CNG stations from Mirpur section 10 to Gabtoli cannot produce CNG, thus incurring huge losses.CNG station owners said that due to non-availability of gas pressure during peak hours, they were losing out on nearly 50 percent revenue each day. Most of these stations have to hang 'No Gas Available' signs during those couple of hours much to the suffering of the drivers of CNG-run taxis and three-wheelers. "I have been waiting for almost three hours as a I have no gas. Using octane or petrol will not give me any profit. I will not be able to raise even the daily submission-money if I do not use gas," said the driver of a three-wheeler, who was waiting patiently in a long queue at one of the stations. Although this was a common problem at CNG stations all over the capital a few months ago, gas scarcity at present is mostly felt in Mirpur. CNG station owners said that the gas crisis originated from its source in Sylhet for which optimum supply cannot be availed in the capital. Other sources said that the Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd regulates the amount of gas to be supplied for each suburb and Mirpur is getting the least share. Besides, even commercial factories around the city get the same pressure through the line used for supplying gas to residences and because of that the pressure remains automatically low. "While we are supposed to get a gas pressure of 10 psi normally, we are getting 3 psi at the moment which is not enough to produce CNG. Therefore we are losing our customers," said Fakir Ashrafuddin, proprietor of Aria CNG filling station in Mirpur. Musleh Uddin, one of the directors of Kingshuk Co-operative Society which runs a CNG filling station said: "Our CNG converting machine requires at least 15 psi pressure. As soon as it comes down to 8 psi, the machine shuts down automatically and we cannot serve clients." "This crisis will continue till the end of March. However, Petrobangla will soon undertake a 300 million-dollar circular gas line project which will be funded by the Asian Development Bank. After that the situation will ease," said general secretary of Bangladesh CNG Owners Association Col. (Retd) Shahabuddin. "Three new gas wells will be dug shortly in the Bay of Bengal. Unocal, a multinational company, will undertake this project. That will greatly improve the pressure condition," hoped Mahmudul Hossain Khan, senior assistant secretary of energy ministry.
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