Singapore wasting money on CNG, should clean up diesel instead

Diesel Fuel News, Sept 29, 2003

Singapore Wasting Money On CNG, Should Clean Up Diesel Instead: According to The Straits Times columnist Christopher Tan, Singapore is making a costly mistake by pursuing compressed natural gas (CNG) instead of clean-diesel for city fleet vehicles. "While CNG vehicles are generally more environmentally-friendly than the current fleet of diesel vehicles used here, they are no cleaner than the latest diesels used elsewhere," he wrote in the Sept.

25, 2003 edition of Straits Times. Noting that high-sulfur fuel hurts a particulate trap, Tan called for cuts in diesel fuel sulfur levels, phase-out of old, Euro-1 vehicles, and the fitment of DPFs on modern, Euro-3 and Euro-4 taxis and buses. "A recent six-month trial here showed that natural gas is not as cost-efficient as diesel," he said. Government officials continue to push CNG fleets, perhaps for diplomatic/political reasons (neighboring Malaysia is Singapore's gas supplier) rather than economic or environmental reasons, he suggested.