The energy regulator has announced a four-day public hearing from March 11 to justify gas tariff hike proposals for all types of consumers, including households, for nearly doubling the average tariff to Tk 12.19 per cubic metre from Tk 7.35.
The hearing would start with the presentation from state-run Petrobangla in favour of the tariff hike proposals and conclude with the same of Pashchimanchol Gas Company Ltd (PGCL) proposal on March 14, said a senior official of Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC).
The proposals of all the state-run gas marketing and distribution companies namely - Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd (TGTDCL), Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company Ltd (BGDCL), Jalalabad Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd (JGTDCL), Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Ltd (KGDCL) and the PGCL - are similar.
Unlike the previous proposals, they sought to raise tariff for household single and double burners to Tk 1,000 and Tk 1200 per month respectively from existing Tk 750 and Tk 800 per month respectively.
New gas tariff for metred household consumers has been proposed at Tk 13.65 per cubic metre from existing Tk 9.10 per cubic metre.
The feed gas in the compressed natural gas (CNG) for filling stations has been proposed to be raised by 25 per cent to Tk 40 per cubic metre from the existing Tk 32.
All the gas companies sought to raise tariff for gas-fired power plants to Tk 7.66 per cubic metre from the existing Tk 3.16, representing a 142 per cent hike.
For fertiliser factories they proposed to increase the tariff by 158 per cent to Tk 7.0 per cubic metre from the existing Tk 2.17.
For gas-fired captive power plants, the proposed tariff is Tk 15.70 per cubic metre from existing Tk 9.62, representing a 63 per cent hike.
For the industrial sector, the natural gas tariff as sought by the distributors is 93 per cent higher at Tk 15 per cubic metre from existing Tk 7.76.
Gas tariff for commercial consumers has been proposed to Tk 20 per cubic metre from existing Tk 17.04, representing a 17 per cent hike.
Sources said, the natural gas tariff has been proposed to cope with the increased import costs of importing LNG, which is expected to double by April next.
Officials said the BERC had turned down the previous proposals of Petrobangla and its subsidiary companies on October 16, 2018 keeping the natural gas tariff unchanged, as the volume of LNG import was less than expected.
They had sought a hike in natural gas tariff, calculating import of LNG to the tune of 1,000 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) then but re-gasified LNG (RLNG) supply was hovering around 300 mmcfd then, they said.
Currently the volume of RLNG supply from the country's maiden LNG import terminal - a FSRU (floating, storage, re-gasification unit) - has increased to around 500 mmcfd, according to Petrobangla statistics.
LNG import is expected to double from April, as the country's second FSRU is expected to be commissioned in early April, said a senior official of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources.
The country has started consuming RLNG commercially since August 18, 2018.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR), meanwhile, waived supplementary duty (SD) and customs duty (CD) at consumers' end and also lowered advance income tax (AIT) to help Petrobangla as well as the users.
NBR waived a total of 122 per cent tax on the locally-produced natural gas at consumers' end to keep the blended gas price rational. NBR, however, slapped 15 per cent value added tax (VAT) on imported LNG.
In its previous hike in February 23, 2017 the BERC had raised natural gas tariff by 22.70 per cent for all types of consumers that became effective in two phases.
