Autogas sales increase in Kazakhstan

© almaty.all.bizAutogas stations look roughly the same everywhere. But the more there are, the better

Autogas is generally on the up globally – sales rose by 8% in 2016 compared to 2015. But for the fuel to go up by 8% on average, it literally had to skyrocket in certain countries. It did and Kazakhstan is one such country – autogas sales increased there by a staggering 43% in 2016. Motorists used over 450 thousand tonnes of the alternative fuel for their cars. Petrol sales dropped accordingly, by 5%.

The tendency should continue at a comparable rate in the following years, since LPG is 2,5 times cheaper than low-octane petrol and 3 times cheaper than high-octane one. And mind you, autogas has all the properties of the latter, so converting a car running on low-octane "juice" is like switching to its high-octane couterpart, but at a fraction of the original price.

If LPG consumption is on the rise, so must be the number of retail stations. Indeed, there's been a surge by 51%. New conversion shops are also being established quickly. What are the reasons behind this sudden surge? It's quite simple – the government deregulated the price of petrol and it increased by 13% in 2016 compared to the year before. That was enough to convince motorists to have their cars equipped with autogas systems.

The minimum price for LPG converting is 260 thousand tenge (800 US dollars) for a four-cylinder passenger car. We do not give preference to any brand, because every brand has its own advantages and peculiarities without regard to the country of its production. But we can say that Italian, Turkish and Polish equipment is the best.

Varvara Gutchenko, manager at Gazcentre station and conversion centre

What cars are getting converted? All sorts of them – from superminis with three-cylinder engines to gas-guzzling SUVs and luxury sedans. Which only goes to show what we've always known – autogas isn't a fuel for the poor, but for the thrifty, the cost-conscious who just don't like spending more than they really have to. We're giving Kazakhstan two thumbs up and hope the market keeps growing rapidly for a number of years. Given the country has its own LPG in abundance, we rest assured about the future of autogas there.