Capping the price of liquefied petroleum gas for the domestic market drew mixed reactions from market players to consumers as the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission fixed the price of 12 kg LPG cylinder at Tk 975 and Tk 591 for private operators and state-run LP Gas Ltd respectively.
Consumers welcomed the move of the commission with caution saying that they welcomed the price fixation of LPG as it was always in the bumpy ride and often fluctuate.
“I’ve never seen a stable LPG price as I had to pay Tk 700 to Tk 1,250 for a 12 kg gas cylinder at different times. For the last time, I bought a 12 kg gas cylinder at Tk 1,050 on March 8. I welcome the move of the government to fix the price of LPG. But I am also suspicious whether the retailers would accept the determined price,” said Nurul Huda, who runs a tea stall at Kalabagan in Dhaka.
“It will be better if the government lowers the price a bit as I had purchased the same volume of a gas cylinder at Tk 700 just two months earlier. We are held hostage at the hands of LPG cylinder suppliers as we have to buy the LPG cylinder at the determined price of manufacturers which fluctuates TK 200 to Tk 300 for a 12 kg gas cylinder within the intervals of months,” Nurul Huda added.
Professor Shamsul Alam, the energy adviser of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh, harshly criticised the BERC for fixing the inflated price of LPG. “It was fixed for the benefits of the private entrepreneurs,” he said.
“The price was fixed to increase the profit of private entrepreneurs as BERC declared the LPG cylinder price three months after the public hearing. When the public hearing was held, prices of prime agents of LPG gas – Propane and Butane – were lower than the current price in the global market,” he said.
LPG tariff should have determined much lower as the prices of Propane and Butane were $550 per tonne and $530 per tonne respectively when the public hearing took place, Shamsul said.
Farzan Hossain, an officer for market and brand communication of Omera LPG Gas, said that the BERC determined the price of LPG gas for the benefit of consumers as LPG price in the global market saw an upward trend.
“We have no complaint about the fixation of LPG price and will comply with the government decision” he added.
The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission fixed the retail prices of liquefied petroleum gas for consumes end on Monday considering the Saudi Aramco contract price of March 2021.
BERC chairman Md Abdul Jalil announced the new LPG tariff in a virtual platform on Monday although the public hearing on fixing the LPG price was held on January 14, 2021, at a court order.
The commission fixed the retail-level LPG price for the private sector companies at Tk 81.30 per kilogramme (kg) with value-added tax and ordered the market players to supply different sizes of cylinders – 5.5kg, 12.5kg, 15kg, 16kg, 18kg, 20kg, 22kg, 25kg, 30kg, 35kg and 45kg – to the consumers.
The price of autogas used for vehicles has been fixed at Tk 47.92 per litre by the commission.
Before the LPG price-fixing, consumers were at the mercy of private sectors as they increase and decrease the price of LPG at their will which forced the people to go deep into their pocket.
A 12-kg LPG cylinder is sold between Tk 980 and Tk 1,100 at different parts of the country, consumers said.
The BERC technical evaluation committee had recommended fixing the price of a 12-kg LPG cylinder at Tk 866, a 35-kg cylinder at Tk 2,525, and a 45-kg LPG cylinder at Tk 3,246.
The LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh had sought to fix the price of a 12-kg cylinder at Tk 1,259, a 35-kg cylinder at Tk 3,672, and a 45-kg cylinder at Tk 4,721.
msh/aj
