DPR debunks rumour of sub-standard gas

[TGD]

 THE Directorate of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has dismissed rumour of killer gas in the Nigerian market, just as stakeholders expressed the need to review the standard of the liquefied petroleum gas cylinders and other equipment.

Speaking during a gas stakeholders meeting at the Lagos office of the DPR at the weekend, the Head, Gas Division, Mr. O.C. Okparaojiako, allayed fears by some people over claims that there is a killer gas or cancerous gas in the market.

He said such claims were unfounded.

However, the stakeholders noted that most of the cylinders currently in circulation in the country are old and there was the need to recertify them.

The DPR boss explained that neither the Department nor the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has certified any gas either sourced locally or imported as unfit for domestic use on account of being substandard.

The clarification came in the wake of complaints by some retailers and consumers that there were reports and text messages circulating to the effect that certain gas was not good for domestic use.

He emphasised that contrary to the claims and the reports, the gas from Niger Republic is not bad and that members of the public have nothing to fear. He said the industry should be happy that there is a gas from other sources, adding that there were other more critical issues that should be of concern to Nigerians on the use of gas.

Addressing the meeting, which was attended by representatives of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), members of the Nigerian Association of LPG Marketers, LPG Retailers Association of Nigeria and gas dealers, Okparaojiako said though efforts were on to review the standard set by the SON on gas and its equipment quality, no gas in the country has been found to be below the existing standard.

He stated that the problem in the gas idustry was not much about the gas itself but the handling and wrong choice of equipment like the burners, valves, regulators and the cylinders.

Rather than creating fears in the people by branding a gas as fake, the DPR Director said the stakeholders should engage the people more on the handling of the product, noting that members of the public should be made aware that the under- filing of cylinder amounts to cheating while over-filling could lead to death.

The stakeholders expressed concern over the negative effect of the report and urged stakeholders to exercise restraints on the spread in an attempt to de-market competitors, as it is capable of making the consumers lose interest in the use of gas.



The Guardian