After two rounds of reduction, the price of 12kg LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders has been increased by Tk 12 to be sold by private operators effective from this month.
Under the new price, a 12kg LPG cylinder will now cost Tk 1,254 up from the previous price of Tk 1,242 in June, including the value-added tax (VAT). At the consumer level in the private sector, the new price of LPG is Tk 104.52 per kg. The new price of LPG will be rationally applicable to other containers from 5kg to 45kg.
Meanwhile, the price of auto gas used in motor vehicles has also been increased from Tk 57.91 to Tk 58.46 per litre, while the price of per kg centrally controlled (reticulated) LPG has increased from Tk100.10 to Tk101.28.
The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) announced the new prices at a virtual press conference on Sunday and said it will come into effect from 6:00pm of the day.
However, the price of LPG, marketed by the state-owned LP Gas Company Ltd (LPGL), remain unchanged as it is locally produced. Its market share is less than 5 percent. The current price of the 12.5 kg LPG cylinder sold by LPGL is Tk 591.
The BERC, for the first time, fixed the retail-level LPG prices on April 12, last year after holding a public hearing to comply with a High Court order.
After that, BERC adjusts the price of LPG in the country based on Saudi CP in every month.
The LPG cylinder price cut comes following a fall in the price of propane and butane – the component raw materials for LPG – set by the Saudi contract price.
Saudi Arabian company Aramco CP, publishes the price of propane and butane – the component raw materials for LPG. Bangladesh's private LPG operators buy the bulk LPG on the basis of the Saudi contract price.
Saudi contract price of propane and butane has dropped from $759 to $725 and from $750 to $725 per tonne, respectively. The new price has been set for the month of July considering the ratio of propane and butane to 35:65.
While making the announcement, BERC Chairman Abdul Jalil said that according to the Saudi CP, the price of propane and butane has decreased by $25 per tonne, but the US dollar rate has increased. Besides, the government has also increased VAT. In all, the LPG price has increased by taka 1 per kg.
He also said that although the price of LPG has come down in the world market, it has gone up due to the devaluation of taka against US dollar.
LP gas prices have been declining since May after several months of upward trend. In May, BERC reduced the price of 12kg cylinder by Tk 104 settling at Tk 1,335. The LPG cylinder price was Tk 1,242 in June.
Among others, commission members Mohammad Abu Faruqe, Md Maqbul-E-Elahi Chowdhury, Mohammad Bazlur Rahman, Md Kamruzzaman and Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman Khan were also present at the press conference.
