Saudi Gazette

 

 

JEDDAH — A severe shortage of cooking gas in various Jeddah districts for the past two months has hit households and restaurants.

 

Long queues are seen at various gas cylinder distribution centers, with people standing for hours to get a cylinder.

 

Abdulrahman Al-Garni, a gas vendor, told Saudi Gazette that there is a problem with gas distribution. He said he used to receive at least 200 gas cylinders daily but now he gets only 50.

 

“Despite assurances by the authorities that a solution was on its way, the problem is getting worse and consumers are frustrated,” said Al-Garni.

 

Jeddah’s current shortage of gas has reportedly pushed the price of a single cylinder up to SR100.

 

According to cooking gas vendors, the delays in the supply and delivery of cylinders are caused by the shortage of staff at the National Gas Company.

 

A source at the company said the shortage in the supply of cooking gas cylinders was due to the fact that the company’s employees stopped work because they were not paid their annual salary increments.

 

“Some of them have actually been sacked,” he said.

 

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, expected hundreds of restaurants in Jeddah to close down because of the crisis.

 

While standing and waiting for his turn, city resident Nasir Bin Hussain said angrily: “We insist that the authorities take action against the racketeers who have been increasing the prices due to the shortage of cooking gas. Residents and workers of local restaurants are lining up at the main warehouses to get a cylinder.

 

 

The situation has become worse at some restaurants, which have incurred losses because they could not get gas.

 

Ghulam Ahmed, a Pakistani worker at a local restaurant, described the situation as “bad” because the business had to shut down.

 

He said: “Since Friday I have been trying to get a few gas cylinders but failed to do so and we had to shut down our restaurant for the time being until we get what we need.”

 

Mohammed Aziz, an employee of another local restaurant located in Safa district, said the restaurant consumes a minimum of 13 kg of gas a day and that they have been forced to close down until the current shortage is over.

 

Now the National Gas Company has started supplying gas cylinders and so the crisis is expected to be over soon. “Many gas trucks started supplying cylinders to the distribution stations from Monday,” the NGC source said.

 

According to the source, there are about 70 gas distribution stations in Jeddah that are daily refilling about 140,000 cylinders.

 

The crisis entered its second week on Tuesday with the company and the distributors exchanging blame. The source said the crisis has reached Makkah where a small SR16 cylinder was now being sold for SR100 or more if available.

 

 

As a result of the crisis, GASCO has relieved its chairman Salman Bin Mohammed Hassan Al-Habashi from his position as acting managing director in the backdrop of continued disputes between him and the company's employees.

 

Iyas bin Sameer Al-Hajri has been appointed CEO.

 

Meanwhile, under instructions by Jeddah Governor Prince Mishal Bin Majed, all 19 employees sacked by the former managing director have been reinstated.

 

Abdul Moneim Al-Shihri, director of the labor office in Makkah Province said the crisis did not result from a shortage of production but from the labor dispute in the company.

 

He said with all employees now safe in their positions, the crisis will soon be over.