Gas price hike announcement likely this afternoon: BERC

The announcement for raising gas prices is likely to come this afternoon, according to an official of Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC).

BERC Deputy Director Tanvir Ahmed confirmed it to The Business Standard.

Earlier, seeking anonymity, a number of BERC officials said the upcoming gas tariff hike is going to be the highest till date, considering state-owned company Petrobangla’s rising expenses for expensive LNG (liquefied natural gas) imports.

In the latest proposals, the gas companies wanted consumers to pay Tk1,350 per month for a single-burner stove instead of the existing Tk750, while a two-burner stove user would have to pay Tk1,440 per month, instead of Tk800 at present.

For metered household consumers, the proposed price is Tk16.41 per cubic metre (one unit), instead of the existing Tk9.10.

Petrobangla – which is responsible for exploring, producing and selling natural gas and other mineral resources – counts a monthly loss of almost Tk2,000 crore for importing LNG and selling the fuel at current prices on the local market.

In January this year, Petrobangla and its associated gas marketing and distribution companies submitted their proposals to the BERC, seeking a rise in tariff for all kind of users.

They sought minimum 50 percent to maximum 211 percent increase in gas tariffs.

In March, the BERC held public hearings on the proposals.

In the hearings, consumer rights groups, businesspeople and left-leaning political parties protested the tariff hike proposals and called for rooting out corruption, theft and gas pilferage to ensure efficient operations of the gas companies.