At a press conference here, Loke said NGV-powered vehicles can no longer be registered to be used in Malaysia from July 1 next year.
He also said Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) will halt the sale of NGV at its stations in stages from July 1 next year.
The minister said this was for the safety of road users and the public, adding that there were only about 44,383 NGV vehicles currently, accounting for just 0.2% of vehicles, not including motorcycles.
He said many of these vehicles were dual-fuel operated. The NGV kits were installed between 1995 and 2014.
“The NGV tanks of these vehicles are now reaching the end of their service life and need to be replaced,” he said, adding that NGV tanks typically have a safe usage period of 15 years.
Loke said there were also some car owners who had modified their vehicles using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders, which were very dangerous. These have caused explosions during accidents before this.
Nonetheless, Loke announced an assistance programme aimed at helping NGV vehicle owners during the coming transition period.
Taxi drivers using NGV vehicles are eligible for a one-off RM3,000 e-voucher through Petronas’s Setel mobile app. They must have been registered with the Land Public Transport Agency before Oct 1.
For dual-fuel vehicle owners, they can get their NGV kits removed for free at workshops selected by the transport ministry. Their vehicles must be registered with the road transport department (JPJ) before Oct 1.
Lastly, for owners of purely NGV-powered vehicles, they are eligible for a one-off payment based on the current value of their vehicles, which will be determined by an independent appraiser.
For this package, the vehicles must also have been registered with JPJ before Oct 1. Upon taking up the offer, the vehicles will be sent to an authorised automotive treatment facility to be disposed of and deregistered by JPJ.
“This is necessary to prevent the misuse of these vehicles or for any illegal modification to be carried out on them as this would endanger the public,” said Loke.
“Payments under this package will be made within three to seven working days of receiving a vehicle’s certificate of destruction and deregistration slip.”
Applicants can check on their eligibility and apply for the three packages at https://www.peralihanngv.com/.