Retail LPG price declines

The price of private operators’ liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has been decreased.

Dhaka, Dec 2 :  The price of private operators’ liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has been  decreased by Tk 85 to Tk 1228 per 12-kg container from Tk 1313 with effect from 6 am Friday (Dec 3)  at the retail level.

Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) announced the new price at a press briefing on Thursday.

 As per the announcement, the prices for other quantities of the LPG will also go down in line with the new price at the same ratio. The price of autogas for motor vehicles was also cut down to Tk 57.24 from the present price of Tk 61.18 per litre.

Announcing the new price, BERC Chairman Abdul Jalil said the price of retail LPG has witnessed the fall as the bulk LPG of Saudi contract price (CP) has declined globally.

“Saudi CP price has declined to $765.75 from the previous price of $850 per metric ton. Bangladesh’s private LPG operators buy the bulk LPG on the basis of the Saudi CP,” he told reporters at the virtual briefing.

The other members of the BERC were present on the occasion.

 The BERC chairman said the price of the state-owned LP Gas Company’s LPG will remain unchanged as it has no relation with the global market price.

LPG industry insiders said the Saudi CP is normally announced at the end of every month to make it effective for the next month and it takes 7-10 days for a shipment of the fuel to arrive in the country.

Most Bangladeshi private companies import their bulk LPG from the Middle East on the basis of Saudi CP and market it locally.

Responding to a question the BERC chairman said the commission is the legitimate responsible body to fix the prices of all petroleum products including petroleum fuels as per the BERC Law.

“In line with the law the commission forwarded a proposal to formulate the necessary rules in this regard to the Energy Division. But still the file did not return to BERC”, he added.    

The BERC for the first time fixed the retail-level LPG price on April 12 after holding a public hearing to comply with a High Court order, reports UNB.