The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) will announce today (Thursday) the new retail prices of LPG for trading in domestic market for May.
The commission held a public hearing with the stakeholders on Wednesday to fix the LPG prices, said a senior official.
The May prices of LPG in domestic market might be lower than the current prices, as the Saudi Aramco contract price (CP) of April 2021 is around 15 per cent lower than the CP price in March.
The Saudi Aramco CP price of April is US$ 530 per tonne for propane and $530 per tonne for butane.
BERC chairman Md Abdul Jalil on April 12 announced retail prices of LPG in domestic market, considering the Saudi Aramco CP of March 2021. It was the highest over the several years at $625 per tonne for propane and $595 per tonne for butane.
He also said the LPG prices for domestic market would be fixed by the commission every month.
AS per the BERC verdict, the current retail price of each 12.5-kg LPG cylinder provided by the state-run LP Gas Ltd is Tk 591, while each 12-kg LPG to be provided by private operators is Tk 975. The retail level LPG price by private sector is Tk 81.30 per kg with value added tax (VAT).
Price of LPG, supplied through reticulated system or centralised storage system, is Tk 79.01 per kg including VAT.
The auto gas, the kind of LPG used in vehicles, price is Tk 47.92 per litre.
Market insiders said Bangladesh imports around 95 per cent of its total LPG requirement from global sources, while LP Gas Ltd produces around 20,000 tonnes of LPG after refining crude oil and condensate.
Bangladesh usually imports pressurized LPG in coaster-type vessels with a capacity of about 1,800 tonnes, delivered to Mongla Port from trading sources such as Singapore, or the nearest deep sea-ports, where large ships can anchor. Its main LPG suppliers include Siam Gas, BB Energy, Vitol Asia and Petredec.
More than 25 LPG companies, of varying sizes and investments, are now operating in the Bangladeshi market.
LPG consumption in the country has risen to around 1.5 million tonnes per year currently from around 1.0 million tonnes in 2018.
azizjst@yahoo.com