LPG hits Rs750 a kg in northern KP as OGRA delays crackdown

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices have climbed as high as Rs750 per kilogram in some northern areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), with cylinders costing more than Rs10,000, as supply disruptions hit consumers across Pakistan, The Express Tribune reported. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has not yet started a planned crackdown on profiteering.

The gap between official and market prices

OGRA fixed the official LPG price for the current month at Rs279.34 per kilogram, but market rates in several areas have risen to between Rs550 and Rs600 per kg. In Peshawar, LPG is selling for around Rs600 per kg, while in northern areas prices have reached Rs750. Cylinder prices have gone above Rs10,000, a heavy extra burden for low-income households.

The Tribune said the lack of effective enforcement has left consumers facing some of the highest LPG prices in the world, as sellers allegedly charge arbitrary rates.

Why the crackdown is on hold

A senior OGRA official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the paper that authorities fear that enforcement could trigger strikes by sellers, disrupt supplies and worsen the existing energy crisis. The official warned that the situation could get worse if enforcement set off supply disruptions, with prices in affected markets possibly passing Rs700 per kg.

An OGRA spokesperson said work was under way to address the issue. He acknowledged that the closure of the Taftan border had created some difficulties, but said he was confident the situation would be brought under control soon.

Where the shortage comes from

The crisis has deepened over the past five to six days after a fall in LPG supplies, which officials linked to the closure of the Taftan border amid tensions between Iran and the United States. About 70 per cent of Pakistan’s LPG requirement is met through imports and the remaining 30 per cent is produced locally, the OGRA official said.

The strain is not new. Dawn reported earlier this week that LPG had hit a record Rs600 a kilogram amid shortages, and our own reports have followed cylinders selling at twice the official price. Read our earlier report on LPG cylinders selling at twice the official price.

Households turn to firewood

Low-income households in KP have been hit hardest, because many also face shortages of natural gas. Residents said the lack of natural gas, together with the rising cost of LPG, has made it harder to meet basic fuel needs for cooking.

In rural areas and on the outskirts of Peshawar, people have begun turning to firewood as both gas and LPG become scarce. That has pushed up the price of firewood too. It has risen by Rs200 to Rs300 per maund, from between Rs1,400 and Rs1,600 to between Rs1,600 and Rs1,800, the Tribune reported.

Protest in Faisalabad

Elsewhere, scores of rickshaw drivers staged a protest at District Council Chowk in Faisalabad on Thursday against what they called overcharging and black-marketing of LPG cylinders, Dawn reported. They carried banners calling on the deputy commissioner to start a crackdown on dealers selling gas to them at twice the government’s fixed price. The drivers said they had been forced to switch to LPG because of the big rise in petrol prices, but that dealers were “looting” them and they could not earn a living.

Why it matters

LPG is a basic cooking and transport fuel for many households and for rickshaw drivers, and the gap of Rs470 or more between the official price and the Rs750 charged in the north shows how far the market has moved from the regulated price. OGRA is caught between enforcing the official price and keeping sellers supplying. Unless the Taftan border reopens and supplies recover, officials themselves say prices could climb further, and poor families in KP will carry the cost.

This article draws on reporting by The Express Tribune and Dawn.