Although the price of private LPG has decreased, government‑supplied LPG has recently become more expensive. The price of a 12.5 kg government LPG cylinder has been raised by Tk 135, bringing it to Tk 825.
At a press conference on Sunday, Jalal Ahmed, chairman of the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC), told journalists that the adjustment to private LPG prices was made in line with the Saudi CP (Contract Price).
Since 2021, Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation Limited sold 12.5 kg liquefied petroleum gas cylinders at Tk 690, aiming to provide the public with easy, affordable, uninterrupted access to bottled LPG. Consumers, however, complain that although they often hear about government cylinders, they cannot find them on the market.
Industry insiders say that because these cylinders are priced low, unscrupulous dealers are refilling private LPG cylinders with government‑supplied gas—buying at Tk 690 and selling at the higher private rate. Officials maintain that the recent price increase for government LPG is intended to curb such losses. Experts counter that, without proper monitoring of government institutions, the public is deprived of vital services.
Sumona Akhter, from Dhaka, said: “I’ve been buying LPG for years, yet I’ve never heard of government cylinders being sold for Tk 690. So why can’t we buy them? Who actually uses this government gas?”
A Dhaka Tribune visit to several markets earlier this week turned up no cylinders at the Tk 690 price point. Sajib, a dealer at Satta LPG Enterprise in Banasree, commented: “There are no government cylinders anywhere in Dhaka. We’ve heard about them but never stocked them.”
On paper, however, the government supplies more than 6,000 cylinders daily. LP Gas Limited—the only state‑owned company bottling LPG at subsidized prices—operates two plants: the Uttar Patenga facility in Chittagong, with a daily capacity of about 63,000 metric tons, and the Golapganj‑Kailashtila plant in Sylhet, producing about 14,000 metric tons. Each plant collects LPG via pipeline from Eastern Refinery Limited (ERL) and Transformed Natural Gas Company Limited (TNGCL), respectively.
Approximately 6,000 cylinders are bottled each day—5,000 in Chittagong and 1,150 in Sylhet. According to BERC data for FY 2023–24, LP Gas Limited purchased 17.96 percent of the total output from these plants, while the defense forces received 25.34 percent. Of the balance, private companies were allocated as follows: Padma Oil Company 24.35 percent, Meghna Petroleum Company Limited 24.15 percent, Jamuna Oil Company Limited 14.98 percent, and Standard Asiatic Oil Company Limited 14.62 percent.
Md Neyamat Ullah, General Manager (A&F and HR) at LP Gas Limited’s Chittagong North Patenga Plant, told Dhaka Tribune: “We supply around 5,000 cylinders daily: 26 percent to Padma, 26 percent to Meghna, 26 percent to Jamuna, and 22 percent to Standard Asiatic Oil Company. These cylinders are later distributed nationwide by dealers.”
Sylhet Kailashtila LPG Plant Engineer Md. Shafiqul Islam said: “We produced 431 metric tons of LPG last month and supplied it through the BPC pipeline. We expect a similar output—around 430–431 metric tons—in April.”
“All this gas is bottled in 12.5 kg cylinders,” he added. “However, BPC can better specify the percentage allocated to each company.”
LP Gas Limited Managing Director Md. Yusuf Hossain Bhuiyan also told Dhaka Tribune: “After production, we bottle and deliver cylinders to BPC’s authorized companies. Marketing and distribution are managed by BPC; our role is limited to production and delivery.”
Mohammad Abdul Quader, Director (Marketing) and Joint Secretary at Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPC), said: “Officially, government‑supplied LPG accounts for only 2 percent of total demand. We channel these cylinders through four companies, which then supply them nationwide via dealers. We have received complaints that some traders sell them to consumers at twice the official price.”
Chairman Jalal Ahmed of BERC noted: “Government LPG production covers only 2 percent of demand, with 25 percent of that reserved for the defense forces. Officials and employees are entitled to one cylinder each per month. Although these cylinders are intended for all segments of society, distribution is not reaching everyone.”
He added: “To resolve this, we recommend raising government LPG prices to align more closely with private rates. Since government LPG is a by‑product rather than separately produced, its price lags behind imported private LPG, driving the discrepancy.”
Professor Dr Shamsul Alam, energy adviser to the Bangladesh Consumer Rights Association (CAB), said: “We have repeatedly urged BERC in writing and at public hearings to allocate government LPG to low‑income groups and monitor distribution. Even under the previous government, BERC did not act on these recommendations.”
BERC Chairman Jalal Ahmed responded: “We received a CAB proposal to allocate government cylinders to marginalized communities, but we prefer not to complicate distribution. However, we can provide cylinders to children’s homes and orphanages in gas‑deprived areas; the Department of Social Welfare will be contacted to facilitate this.”
