Tk 475 extra per cylinder in two months: New LPG price scrambles middle-class household budgets

Tanjimul Islam, an accounts officer at a private firm in the capital, voiced his frustration over the new cooking gas price at Karwan Bazar on Tuesday morning. The price has risen by another Tk 223 within a month, after rising Tk 252 the month before — nearly Tk 500 in extra cost in two months — while his salary has not risen, he said.

The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) on Monday evening (November 2) raised the November price of a 12kg liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder by Tk 223 to Tk 2,060. The new price took effect from 8pm that night.

In October the same cylinder's price had been raised by Tk 252 to Tk 1,837. From September's Tk 1,585, a 12kg cylinder has therefore risen by Tk 475 in just two months — an increase of about 30 percent.

Consumers also complain the cylinder is not available in shops at the fixed price. Israf Jahan Saifa, a housewife from Mohammadpur in the capital, said she saw on television on Monday night that the price had been set at Tk 2,060, but in the morning a shopkeeper asked Tk 2,400 to Tk 2,500. She said there has been a gas supply problem for the past month and a half.

Md Yasin Ali, a private employee from Rayerbazar, said cooking gas has to be bought and the cost cannot be cut. Families like his now have to cut other market spending to buy gas at the much higher price.

Jahirul Islam, a teacher at a private kindergarten school who came to New Market to buy a cylinder for home, said that alongside rice, lentils, vegetables, fish and meat prices, house rent and electricity bills, gas prices are now rising too — while salaries do not rise this way every month. Meeting these costs leaves no room for savings, and sometimes means borrowing to get by, he said.

Retailers, for their part, say they are not charging more willingly. Mosleh Uddin Bepari, a retailer in New Market, said although the government has fixed the price at Tk 2,060, retailers have to buy the cylinder from dealers for Tk 2,250. He asked how they could sell at the fixed price after transport and shop costs.

Energy experts say the crisis is not only about the price rise. There is also a large gap between the government-fixed price and what consumers actually pay. If a Tk 2,060 cylinder sells for Tk 2,400, the buyer pays Tk 340 more than the fixed price. Without proper investigation and market monitoring, they say, the benefit of a new price will be hard to deliver to consumers.

Behind the instability in the LPG market lies not only higher international prices but also weaknesses in import and supply systems. About 99 percent of the country's LPG market is controlled by private firms, so if supply from a few large importers falls, the whole market feels it.

Importers' liquidity crisis and higher fuel prices on the international market have raised concerns over supply. Bangladesh Bank says large importing firms also face a liquidity crisis, and policy support for them may be considered if needed.

Import data show Bashundhara LPG imported 66,864 metric tonnes of gas in fiscal 2024-25, but that fell to 10,027 metric tonnes in 2025-26. In the same period, JMI Industrial Gas's imports fell from 82,645 metric tonnes to 8,800 metric tonnes. Of 23 firms with import capacity in the country, only 8 to 9 import regularly.

At a September 28 views-exchange meeting at the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, however, importers and operators claimed there was no LPG crisis in the country. Citing National Board of Revenue (NBR) data, the meeting was told 157,760 metric tonnes of LPG were imported in August and 118,742 metric tonnes by September 22. The data presented described supply and stock as satisfactory. Energy minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud instructed those concerned to stay alert so no one could create an artificial crisis by illegally hoarding.

Another retailer from the same area, Md Alauddin, said cylinders are no longer available as regularly as before. Even after ordering from dealers, gas is often not available as demanded, and when supply does arrive it costs more than before.

Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) vice-president SM Nazer Hossain said BERC's repeated price hikes are putting extra pressure on ordinary consumers. Consumer interests and market conditions need proper weight in price-setting through public hearings, he said, adding that raising prices without improving a supply crisis that has lasted a month and a half will only increase consumer discontent.

Alongside cooking gas, BERC has also raised the price of auto gas used in vehicles. The price per litre has been raised from Tk 84.62 to Tk 91.95 — up Tk 7.33 per litre. The increase may also affect the transport sector, because higher operating costs for auto-gas vehicles ultimately pass on to passengers.