No sigh of relief as LPG price hiked by Tk266 per 12kg cylinder

At a time when consumers are already feeling the heat from spiralling prices of commodities and the rise in electricity price, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has just become dearer by Tk266 per 12kg cylinder.

The price was increased from Tk1,232 to Tk1,498 by the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (Berc) on Thursday.

The price will be effective from 2 February and will remain in force until further notice, reads a press release by Berc.

Just two days ago, the government had again hiked electricity prices by 5% at the retail level. Less than three weeks ago, on 12 January, electricity prices had increased by 5%.

On 18 January, the Energy and Mineral Resource Division also increased the gas price by up to 179%, which took the weighted average gas price from Tk11.91 cubic metre to Tk21.27.

The hike coincides with the International Monetary Fund's approval of a $4.7 billion loan sought by Bangladesh.

For February, BERC set per kg LPG price at Tk124.85, up from Tk 102.70 per kg in January.

The commission said the price of other sizes of LPG cylinders will be determined considering the per kilogramme rate.

The BERC announces the price of LPG every month in coordination with the prices of propane and butane of Saudi Aramco Company, to be consistent with the international market.

Considering the Saudi contract price of propane and butane – raw materials of LPG – at $790 per tonne, the regulatory commission adjusted the price, reads the announcement.

For reticulated gas systems, the price for the running month has been set at Tk121.62 per kg, up by Tk22.16 per kg from last month.
Besides, the price of the auto gas has been increased from Tk57.41 to Tk69.71 per litre.

However, the price of the government provided LPG has remained unchanged at Tk591 per 12.5kg cylinder.