He said due to government's failure to convince the marketing companies to sell the commodity at the prices fixed by Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), companies have increased the product's price by Rs 30 per kg in December. Ogra on December 8 fixed a maximum reasonable price of the commodity at Rs 125.33 per kg but marketing companies are selling the commodity at Rs 225 per kg in hilly areas like Gilgit- Baltistan and Azad Kashmir, he said. "We are bound to sell LPG at higher rates because we are getting costly gas. We request the regulator to cancel the licenses of marketing companies which do not sell LPG at the prescribed rate," he said.
The LPG marketing companies are claiming that increase in the price of the commodity is because of reduction in local production, which has declined to 800 tons per day from 1200 tons per day. When contacted, an importer of LPG on condition of anonymity said "marketing companies have increased the product price by Rs 60 per domestic cylinder because of expensive imports, while the LPG retailers have enhanced the price at the rate of Rs 100 per kg."
He said the commodity price has also increased in the international market owing to high demand in Japan and other major importers of the commodity. Furthermore, local LPG prices have also gone up due to depreciation of Pak Rupee against the US dollar. Ogra on December 8 fixed the maximum consumer price for 100 percent locally produced LPG at Rs 1,477 for 11.8-kg cylinder, which makes the price Rs 125.16 per kilogramme, but marketing companies are charging rates at will.
The maximum consumer price for 100 percent imported LPG will be Rs 1,644 per 11.8-kg cylinder, that is Rs 139.32 per kilogramme and the maximum consumer price for local and imported mixed LPG has been fixed by Ogra at Rs 1,479 for 11.8-kg cylinder, which is Rs 125.33 per kg.
After the current increase in the LPG prices the commodity will be sold at Rs 180 per kg against Rs 170 per kg in Sargodha, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, and Dera Ghazi Khan. In Lahore, Faisalabad, Rahim Yar Khan, Multan, Attock Dera Ismail Khan and Peshawar LPG will be sold at over Rs 170 per kg against Rs 160 per kg. The retail price of LPG in Jhang, Sargodha, Sahiwal, Gujrat and Gujranwala has reached Rs 165 per kg against Rs 155 per kg.