An operator selling petrol by the roadside in Jalan Teluk Kumbar, Penang.
BALIK PULAU: It is an offence to bottle petrol and resell it without a licence – but try telling that to the people of Teluk Kumbar near here.
The Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry has found sundry traders in the rural town reselling the fuel in bottles, and there seems to be a ready market for it given the distance to the nearest petrol station.
Deputy director Mohd Nor Musa said an enforcement team found a roadside trader offering bottled petrol yesterday at slightly higher than the pump price.
The trader had several 1.5L plastic bottles of petrol in the back of his small lorry.
“He is deaf and a senior citizen. He sells bottled petrol as a convenience to the townsfolk for a small profit.
“He didn’t know that as petrol is a controlled item, he was committing an offence. We advised him to stop it,” Mohd Nor told The Star yesterday.
With the nearest petrol station many kilometres away, bottled petrol makes life easier for the people of Teluk Kumbar, especially motorcyclists, said a villager who did not want to be named.
“Even though it costs a bit more, we don’t mind,” he said, adding that a 1.5L bottle of petrol costs RM5.
Going by this week’s RON95 price of RM2.17 per litre, 1.5L would cost RM3.26 at the pump.
“The traders will also sell smaller amounts at RM2 or RM3 to motorcyclists,” he added.
Another local who gave his name as Pak Mat said there were several stalls in the area reselling petrol.
He claimed that the majority of the operators were disabled people. “This is possibly the only job they can do. We don’t mind supporting their business,” he said.
