Daily Times

The government has increased the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) price by 126 percent since April 2020, and the current massive hike in tariff has put LPG price at a historically high level.

LPG Distributors Association of Pakistan Chairman Irfan Khokhar said this on Saturday, adding the per kilogram LPG price which was Rs90 in April 2020 has now reached Rs203.69. He further said that the residents of remote districts of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir will have to pay an additional amount of Rs250 per cylinder due to the recent price hike.

He said that LPG and kerosene oil are used by the people living in far-flung areas of the country and the recent price hikes in rates of both commodities may not be beneficial for the government’s environmental initiatives since many poor people will once again start burning wood to keep themselves warm in the coming days.

LPG plays an important role in the energy mix since it provides clean fuel to the residents of the country’s remote areas who traditionally relied on wood during winter.

Khokhar called for better management of the country’s energy resources, saying Pakistan is likely to face some problems during the next winter season. He said the government must take necessary steps on a fast track basis to control the rising LPG prices by reducing taxes. He also called for the resumption of gas supply from Jamshoro Joint Venture Limited (JJVL) which has been offline for over a year. The plant had a production capacity of about 400 tons of LPG. The government increased the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for domestic consumers by Rs29.10 per kilogram or Rs344 per cylinder, according to a notification issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority. The government also raised petroleum prices during its last fortnightly review. An 11.8kg domestic cylinder of LPG has gone up by Rs343.38 and new price has been fixed at Rs2,403.55.

The total supply of LPG in Pakistan is about one million metric tons, according to the latest Pakistan Economic Survey. The document maintains there are about 11 LPG producers and 216 LPG marketing companies operating in the country.