CNG filling station owners threaten nationwide shutdown over 4-point demand

Bangladesh CNG Filling Station and Conversion Workshop Owners Association today threatened to shut down all CNG filling stations across the country from August 23 if the government fails to meet its four-point demand, including an increase in the sales commission.

The announcement was made at a press conference held at Akram Tower in Bijoynagar, Dhaka.

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As part of its protest programme, the association also announced a symbolic nationwide strike at all CNG filling stations on July 30, from 6:00am until midnight.

Amiruzzaman Chowdhury, convener of the steering committee formed to implement the programme, read out a written statement at the press conference. Association President Manoranjan Bhakta, Secretary General Farhan Noor and other leaders were present.

The association demanded that the commission on CNG sales be raised from the current Tk 8 per cubic metre to at least Tk 13.96.

It also called for an automatic mechanism to adjust the commission in line with future fuel price increases, the abolition of the practice of taking additional security deposits from existing customers following gas price hikes, and a reduction in licence, renewal and land lease fees charged by various government agencies, including the Roads and Highways Department.

The association leaders said the commission has remained unchanged since September 1, 2015, despite repeated increases in electricity and gas prices and a sharp rise in operating costs.

They said inflation, higher wages, increased bank guarantee charges, higher loan interest rates, the depreciation of the taka against the US dollar and other rising expenses have rendered the current commission structure unviable, forcing many filling stations to operate at a loss.

According to the association, it has repeatedly sought discussions with the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources and the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC), but has received no positive response.

The owners argued that they are unable to pass the additional costs on to consumers because both the purchase price and the retail price of CNG are fixed by the government.

They also claimed that a high-level technical committee formed by the ministry and Petrobangla had earlier recommended increasing the commission by Tk 2.98, but BERC approved only a Tk 1 increase in 2015, leaving the remainder of the recommendation unimplemented.

The association said the CNG sector, built on investments of around Tk 5,000 crore, is facing serious sustainability challenges and urged the government to intervene promptly to avert public suffering.