page_title: Compressed natural gas
section_title: Asia
hierarchical_section_title: Compressed natural gas / Worldwide / Asia
caption_attribution_description: bus no.1-44166
context_page_description: Compressed natural gas is a fuel that can be used in place of gasoline, diesel fuel and liquefied petroleum gas. CNG combustion produces fewer undesirable gases than the aforementioned fuels. In comparison to other fuels, natural gas poses less of a threat in the event of a spill, because it is lighter than air and disperses quickly when released. Biomethane — refined biogas from anaerobic digestion or landfills — can be used.
  CNG is made by compressing natural gas, which is mainly composed of methane, to less than 1% of the volume it occupies at standard atmospheric pressure. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of 20–25 MPa, usually in cylindrical or spherical shapes.
  CNG is used in traditional gasoline/internal combustion engine automobiles that have been modified or in vehicles specifically manufactured for CNG use, either alone, with a segregated gasoline system to extend range or in conjunction with another fuel such as diesel.
context_section_description: In Singapore, CNG is increasingly being used by public transport vehicles like buses and taxis, as well as goods vehicles. However, according to Channel NewsAsia on April 18, 2008, more owners of private cars in this country are converting their petrol-driven vehicles to also run on CNG – motivated no doubt by rising petrol prices. The initial cost of converting a regular vehicle to dual fuel at the German conversion workshop of C. Melchers, for example, is around S$3,800; with the promise of real cost-savings that dual-fuel vehicles bring over the long term.
  Singapore currently has five operating filling stations for natural gas. Sembcorp Gas Pte Ltd. runs the station on Jurong Island and, jointly with Singapore Petroleum Company, the filling station at Jalan Buroh. Both these stations are in the western part of the country. Another station on the mainland is in Mandai Link to the north and is operated by SMART Energy. SMART also own a second station on Serangoon North Ave 5 which was set up end of March 2009; The fifth and largest station in the world was opened by the UNION Group in September 2009. This station is recognized by the Guniness World Records as being the largest in the world with 46 refuelling hoses. This station is located in Toh Tuck. The Union Group, which operates 1000 CNG Toyota Wish taxis plan to introduce another three daughter stations and increase the CNG taxi fleet to 8000 units.
  As a key incentive for using this eco-friendly fuel Singapore has a green vehicle rebate for users of CNG technology. First introduced in January 2001, the GVR grants a 40 percent discount on the OMV (open market value) cost of newly registered green passenger vehicles. This initiative will end at the end of 2012 as the government believes the 'critical mass' of CNG vehicles would then have been built up.
  The Ministry of Transport of Myanmar passed a law in 2005 which required that all public transport vehicles — buses, trucks and taxis, be converted to run on CNG. The Government permitted several private companies to handle the conversion of existing diesel and petrol cars, and also to begin importing CNG variants of buses and taxis. Accidents and rumours of accidents, partly fueled by Myanmar's position in local hydrocarbon politics, has discouraged citizens from using CNG vehicles, although now almost every taxi and public bus in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, run on CNG. CNG stations have been set up around Yangon and other cities, but electricity shortages mean that vehicles may have to queue up for hours to fill their gas containers. The Burmese opposition movements are against the conversion to CNG, as they accuse the companies as being proxies of the junta, and also that the petrodollars earned by the regime would go towards the defense sector, rather than towards improving the infrastructure or welfare of the people.
  In Malaysia, the use of CNG was originally introduced for taxicabs and airport limousines during the late-1990s, when new taxis were launched with CNG engines while taxicab operators were encouraged to send in existing taxis for full engine conversions. The practice of using CNG remained largely confined to taxicabs predominately in the Klang Valley and Penang due to a lack of interest. No incentives were offered for those besides taxicab owners to use CNG engines, while government subsidies on petrol and diesel made conventional road vehicles cheaper to use in the eyes of the consumers. Petronas, Malaysia's state-owned oil company, also monopolises the provision of CNG to road users. As of July 2008, Petronas only operates about 150 CNG refueling stations, most of which are concentrated in the Klang Valley. At the same time, another 50 were expected by the end of 2008.
  As fuel subsidies were gradually removed in Malaysia starting June 5, 2008, the subsequent 41 percent price hike on petrol and diesel fuel led to a 500 percent increase in the number of new CNG cylinders installed. National car maker Proton considered fitting its Waja, Saga and Persona models with CNG kits from Prins Autogassysteme
caption: A CNG powered Hino bus, operated by BMTA in Thailand.
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