By Suresh Perera
An increase in the price of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) is now on the cards to offset a staggering loss of Rs. 1.5 billion per month incurred by Litro Gas Lanka in the backdrop of a spike in global pricing, which a senior industry official described as a “crippling blow”.
“We have to incur a loss of Rs. 700 on every domestic LPG cylinder sold in the market”, says Janaka Pathirathna, the company’s Director, Sales & Marketing/Corporate Affairs.
He said that the approval of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) has already been sought to push up LPG prices, but there was still no formal decision on the matter.
With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting markets across the world and
the currency fluctuations taking place, the global prices of LPG as one of the
world’s most widely used energy sources have been volatile throughout the
world.
According to Argus Independent Commodity Price Reporting Agency, the leading independent provider of energy and commodity price benchmarks, rising prices and uncertain economic forecasts overshadow the LPG industry globally. The Argus pricing benchmark ‘Argus Far East Index’ is used widely in Asia, while Saudi Aramco Index is also used in countries such as Sri Lanka.
In Sri Lanka, Litro Gas Lanka, the national LPG provider has consistently maintained stable prices in adhering to the President’s “