DOHA: With complaints multiplying about the shortage of cooking gas cylinders in some areas in the country, a senior official of Woqod has put the onus on the distributors, claiming that sufficient number of gas cylinders are still in circulation.
Woqod has no plans to phase out the old gas cylinders (metal body) and is not forcing people to switch over to the new translucent cylinders, according to Dr Abdul Kareem Rawash, gas operations manager of the company.
Reacting to complaints about shortage of cylinders, Rawash said: "Woqod is filling 16,000 to 20,000 gas cylinders daily which is sufficient to meet the current demands of the local market."
He added that if there was a shortage of cylinders in some areas, the dealers were responsible for that. "We will not accept any delay in the service by the dealers. People who have complaints about the distributors can contact our office," said Rawash, in an interview with Al Sharq.
Customers can lodge their complaints on telephone: 44085707. He said currently there were 46 authorised dealers in the country and 230 trucks distributing the cylinders. These vehicles undergo daily technical inspections to ensure a glitch-free service, said the official. All agents are dealing in old cylinders since the new transparent cylinders are distributed through the Woqod stations and selected supermarkets. "Customers are free to choose between the old and new cylinders. We are not asking people to switch over to the new cylinders," said Rawash.
He, however, added that the new cylinders were more safe and easy to handle. Such cylinders introduced about 20 years ago are currently in use in 70 countries across the world. They are not prone to explosions.
The official said about 25,000 new cylinders were already sold out. Although the actual cost is QR350, a customer can buy it at QR300 if he replaces an old cylinder. Woqod is currently filling 500 transparent cylinders daily, he added.
The official denied reports that Woqod was still refilling the old 48kg cylinders which were cancelled some time ago.
"May be some dealers are refilling them in un unsafe manner. We will launch an investigation in collaboration with the Civil Defence Department to detect any such cylinders still being used in the country," said Rawash.
He said no vehicle transporting the gas cylinders were allowed to carry more than 70 cylinders. They could pose a safey threat to the public following a tyre burst or puncture. In such instances, the dealers will be ordered to repair the vehicle at the soonest. If they fail to respond, the vehicle would be banned from entering the filling stations, said the official.
© The Peninsula 2011
