The BERC slashed the retail price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for October by 2.83 per cent on Sunday in line with the downtrend trend of fuel prices in the international market.
The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) decreased the price of cooking gas, provided by private operators.
The price of a 12-kg LPG cylinder is fixed at Tk 1,200 for October trading, compared to Tk 1,235 of September.
BERC Chairman Abdul Jalil virtually announced the new LPG price on Sunday afternoon.
Although the LPG price in the international market fell by around 10 per cent, the BERC slashed the price only by 2.83 per cent - due to depreciation of the local currency, taka, against the US dollar, he said.
The commission considered letter of credit (L/C) settlement price at Tk 106.64 per US dollar to calculate import cost of the fuel. Had the US dollar rate were lower, the BERC could cut the domestic LPG price drastically, he added.
Responding to an allegation of charging higher price by the private companies for LPG, the BERC chairman sought written complaints from the consumers to look into the issue.
The commission fixed the LPG price in proportion to the Saudi Aramco contract price (CP) of October 2022, which is the benchmark for fixing its price in the domestic market.
It also considered fluctuations in foreign currency and change in the value added tax (VAT) amount to fix the month's LPG price.
The Saudi Aramco CP price of propane is US$590 per tonne and butane $560 per tonne for October trading.
The BERC considered propane-butane mixture at the ratio of 35:65 to get the average price at $570.50 per tonne.
The Saudi Aramco CP price of propane was $650 per tonne and butane $630 per tonne for September.
"The new prices will have immediate effect from October 2," said the BERC's chairman.
The private sector operators now sell LPG to consumers through different sizes of cylinders, like 5.5-kg, 12.5-kg, 15-kg, 16-kg, 18-kg, 20-kg, 22-kg, 25-kg, 30-kg, 35-kg, and 45-kg.
Price for LPG, to be supplied through reticulated system or centralised storage system, was fixed at Tk 96.78 per kg, inclusive of VAT, for October.
Retail price of auto gas -- the LPG used in vehicles -- for the month was also slashed to Tk 55.92 per litre, including VAT, from September's Tk 57.55 per litre.
The price of state-owned LP Gas's LPG was kept unchanged at Tk 591 for each 12.5-kg cylinder.
The BERC fixes the LPG prices for private operators within the first week of every month, in accordance with market-based pricing of the widely used fuel.
Currently, 27 LPG operators are doing business, although some 58 received licences. Some 20 operators import around 1.10 million tonnes of LPG from the international market, which are around 98 per cent of the country's total requirement of LPG, while seven are satellite operators.
There are some 20 LPG terminals across the country and the total reserve capacity is around 100,000 tonnes.
Some 35 million LPG cylinders are being used in the country. A total of 200 road tankers, 5,000 trucks and 21 cargoes are involved with the LPG business here.
Azizjst@yahoo.com
