ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) raised the LPG price in Pakistan by Rs14.73 to Rs294.07 per kilogram for November, from Rs279.34 in October.
Open-market sellers, however, are charging up to Rs630 per kilogram, more than twice the notified rate, as supply shortages continue. The official price of an 11.8 kg domestic cylinder rose by Rs173.86 to Rs3,470.09 from Rs3,296.23 last month. The revised rates took effect on Sunday.
Company-operated franchises are charging up to Rs400 per kilogram. OGRA linked the increase to a 6.47% rise in the Saudi Aramco contract price. The average US dollar exchange rate fell by 0.12% over the same period.
LPG Distributors Association of Pakistan Chairman Irfan Khokhar blamed the closure of the Iran border for the supply shortage. Khokhar estimated that at least 70% of Pakistan’s LPG supplies came from Iran.
He called for government action against excessive market prices. “The government has to make serious efforts to control market manipulations,” he said.
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Meanwhile, Pakistan LPG Marketers Association Chairman Ali Haider warned that companies could suspend business from November 16 over the proposed LPG policy.
Haider opposed any reversal of deregulation and warned against measures that would sideline private importers. His association wrote to Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik, arguing that officials had excluded private-sector representatives while drafting the policy.
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The association called for full deregulation of the LPG sector. It warned that businesses would observe a strike from November 16 if the government implemented the disputed proposals.
OGRA has increased the official LPG rate to Rs294.07 per kilogramme for November, while open-market prices have reached Rs630 during supply shortages.
