LPG distributors deplore high gas cost

LAHORE: LPG Association of Pakistan has deplored the high price of LPG cylinders in the country despite a crash in global rates and urged the government to enforce its policy of keeping local prices at par with the international level, a statement said on Monday.
Chairman LPG Association Farooq Iftikhar said Pakistani LPG consumers are paying at least Rs 150 more for each cylinder because state owned LPG producers have maintained previous high prices.
He said Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), Pak Arab Refinery Company (PARCO), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), which account for more than 75 percent of the country’s LPG production and are state owned, have refused to lower their prices in line with the fall in Saudi Aramco Contract Price (CP) - a leading international benchmark for LPG prices.
He said for years the government had maintained its policy of keeping local prices at parity with international prices.
Although the policy still remains in effect, the government is reluctant to enforce it, leaving consumers with no option but to pay higher prices for locally produced liquefied petroleum gas.