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span class="inline inline-left">Fill ‘er up: A gas station worker fills a public minivan tank with compressed natural gas (CNG) in Rawamangun, East Jakarta, on Wednesday. JP/R. Berto WedhatamaA decade ago, when the global oil price was no more than US$30 per barrel, you might have laughed if someone suggested you use gas-based fuels.

But, now, when the price stays at around $100 per barrel and the government is planning to ban you from buying subsidized fuel, what do you think?

Starting April 2012, if the House of Representatives approves the plan, all private car owners will be faced by a difficult choice: buying expensive non-subsidized fuels or converting to cheaper gas fuels. However, many people see raising the price of subsidized fuel as more practical and logical than the sale restriction plan.

If you take the first option, by all means, but you have to be ready to dig deeper into your pocket because the non-subsidized fuel prices currently stand at between Rp 8,000 (87 US cents) and Rp 9,000 per liter. Your transportation costs will consequently double.

The second choice is no better, but seems more reasonable. To allow a car to consume liquefied gas for vehicles (LGV) or compressed natural gas (CNG), the owner has to install a converter kit with a price of between Rp 12 and 14 million per unit, depending on the capacity of the tank. Despite the expensive kit, the car owner can enjoy cheaper fuel prices afterward.

The LGV price is Rp 5,600 per liter, still much cheaper than the Rp 8,600 for Pertamax (one of widely used non-subsidized fuels), while the CNG price, mostly used by public transportation vehicles, stands at Rp 3,100 per liter, even cheaper than the Rp 4,500 of subsidized Premium.

The problem with gas as fuel is that the number of filling stations is limited. In Greater Jakarta, where the limitation on subsidized-fuel distribution is expected to be implemented first, only 10 fuel stations sell LGV and 6 stations CNG.

Another concern is related to the safety of vehicles using gas as fuel because there have been several incidents in the past where gas-powered Transjakarta buses have burst into flames. A number of explosions of domestic 3-kilogram liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) canisters attributed to low quality construction and fake regulator kits could also make car owners hesitant about using gas as fuel.

Others also warn that installing gas-converter kits might invalidate warranties from car producers.

Those constraints, however, have not deterred Tony Hilman (35), an employee at a private company, from installing a converter kit in his car. At PT Autogas Indonesia’s workshop in Serpong, South Tangerang, Banten, he said that he decided to convert to gas because he simply wanted to save money.

“Besides, the price of the fuel is cheaper, the technology is perfectly safe, not like many other people think. The technology has been proven for decades in other countries; we should not worry about its safety,” he argued.

For him, the government has been on the right track by encouraging private car owners to utilize gas-based fuels. In addition to reducing fuel subsidies, gas produces fewer emissions compared to oil-based fuels.

“Gas is good for our environment. Utilizing more gas will improve air quality. It will be good for our children and grandchildren,” said Tony.

At that point, he directly met Deputy Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Widjajono Partowidagdo, who also came to the workshop to collect his official car, which now has a converter kit installed.

Tony gave a letter containing some of his recommendations to the deputy minister, such as requesting the government build more gas infrastructure, such as gas filling stations so that gas users could easily find where to refill their empty tanks. He also hoped the government could educate the people about the importance of reducing dependence on oil-based fuels.

“I hope the government can provide subsidies or installments for private car owners to buy converter kits to encourage them to use gas,” he said in closing his discussion with Widjajono.

Responding to the recommendations, the deputy minister said the government had prepared a policy framework to develop gas infrastructure in Indonesia. Regarding subsidies for installing converter kits, he reported that the discussion was still underway, but certainly, the government would help private car owners to get converter kits.

Hendi Suhendi, the manager of the Autogas workshop, explained that there were two kinds of converter kits: LGV and the CNG. Most private cars used LGV, while public transportation vehicles use CNG, he said.

“We import the tanks from Thailand. For the kit, we give a guarantee for a year, while for the tank, the guarantee is for three years,” he said.

From 2005 to date, the workshop has installed 600 converter kits. After the government intensively campaigned for the conversion, in January, the workshop installs around 10 kits per day, from only five kits earlier.

An LGV converter kit comprises eight components: liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) refueling port, LPG tank, multivalve, reducer, filter, injector rail, change-over switch and gas ECU. For CNG, the components are almost the same, the differences are only in its tank and valve.

Currently, PT Autogas only has two workshops, in Serpong and Palembang, South Sumatra. Another workshop at Gunung Sahari in Central Jakarta is still being prepared.

The government plans to order PT Dirgantara Indonesia to produce converter kits.

This year the government promises to increase the number of stations selling LGV from 10 to 108 in Java and Bali, while for CNG, 54 “mother and daughter” stations will be built in the two islands by the end of the year to add to the current 12 stations in Jakarta and one in Bali.

Despite the hype, Jayan Sentanuhady, an internal combustion engine specialist from Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University, doubted the capability of Dirgantara Indonesia to produce the kits in large enough numbers.

“Gadjah Mada University has developed the technology for about three years. Until now, we are not sure whether we are capable of maintaining the quality and the safety of the products we produce. Moreover, Dirgantara Indonesia has no experience in this field,” he claimed.

Locations of fuel stations selling LGV