Petronas Dagangan Bhd is reviewing its natural gas vehicle (NGV) business following the decreasing demand nationwide, said managing director Syed Zainal Abidin.

He said Petronas is obligated to ensure its stations remain operational to provide NGV to taxis, but the reduction of between 15 and 20 per cent in demand yearly pushes the company to re-look this business.

"We've seen in the last couple of years the demand has declined, that is something we are reviewing and discussing with the government on what would be the next form of alternative energy for vehicles.

"The government is drafting a programme. We know the likes of the hybrid and electric cars are coming, so there might be a tipping point where people are converting to these alternative energy vehicles," Syed Zainal told reporters today.

He was met after launching the Petronas Mesra and AirAsia BIG two-way conversion points event. Also present were AirAsia Group Bhd (RedBeat Ventures) chief executive officer (CEO) Aireen Omar and AirAsia BIG CEO Spencer Lee.

Syed Zainal (above) also said Petronas Dagangan plans to increase the revenue contribution from its non-fuel segment to 30-35 per cent in the future from the current 14 per cent.

He said the move would provide long-term sustainability for the company, noting the standard benchmark of revenue in the region currently stands at around 40 per cent.

At the event, AirAsia BIG added Petronas Mesra to its instant points exchange platform BIG Xchange, the first ever partner with two-way points conversion, giving BIG Members and Mesra Members more freedom to choose how they use their loyalty points.

Starting today, BIG Members will be able to link their Petronas Mesra account to their AirAsia BIG account via BIG Xchange, available on the AirAsia BIG mobile app, to instantly convert Mesra Points to BIG Points and vice versa.

The conversion is 1,250 BIG Points for 600 Mesra Points, and 2,000 Mesra Points for 500 BIG Points.

- Bernama