‘Propane fuelled cars a reality next year’

By Angelos Anastasiou

Propane-gas powered vehicles will be a reality in Cyprus by the first quarter of 2016, deputies on the House Commerce committee told reporters on Tuesday.

According to figures submitted to the committee session, consumption tax on propane is 7 cents per litre, whereas liquid fuels are taxed by as much as 48 cents per litre.

“It seems that the tax on propane will remain steady at least for a few years, so that investments in the requisite infrastructure can make this option available to the Cypriot consumer,” committee chairman Zacharias Zachariou said.

He added that all legislative items relating to this matter have already been passed by parliament, and all that is left are ministerial decisions.

“To date, they seem to be on track,” Zachariou said. “But our role is to monitor the timelines and make sure political decisions are made timely.”

Meanwhile, he said that the licensing of technical training service providers will be concluded next month, after which anyone interested in being licensed will be able to apply.

Zachariou added that by early December fully trained technicians will be available to install fuel systems, and that pressure-measuring equipment has already been ordered so that inspectors can ascertain proper installation.

AKEL deputy Costas Costa welcomed the government’s ongoing efforts to introduce the use of propane in cars, noting that the political decision was made by the previous government.

“It was a right and necessary decision, since propane is a much cheaper and cleaner fuel,” he said. “In addition, its introduction will help bring the price of other fuels down.”

However, he noted that “unfortunately completion of planning appears to be delayed”.
“It seems that propane use cannot be introduced in Cyprus before the first quarter of 2016,” he said.

Costa called on the ministries of energy, interior, finance and labour to expedite their actions in establishing the tax levy on propane gas.