Why Your LPG Cylinder Still Costs More Than the New Official Price

Bangladesh's Energy Regulatory Commission raised the official price of a 12 kilogram LPG cylinder to Tk 1,837 on October 4, a jump of Tk 252 from the previous rate of Tk 1,585. On paper, that is simply the regulator tracking a roughly 10 percent rise in the Saudi contract price that sets the regional benchmark for propane and butane. In practice, a survey of Dhaka retailers found eight of ten shops had received no cylinders at all since around September 20, and those that did have stock were charging between Tk 1,900 and Tk 2,250, hundreds of taka above the new official rate.

• The official 12kg cylinder price rose Tk 252 to Tk 1,837 on October 4, tracking higher import costs.
• Street prices in Dhaka have run Tk 1,900 to Tk 2,250, well above the regulated rate, amid reported shortages.
• The regulator has not held a public hearing on LPG prices since April 2021, despite a 2020 High Court directive requiring one.
• A public hearing is now set for October 29 to review prices, bottling costs and dealer commissions.

A price hike that followed real cost increases

The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission, known as BERC, pointed to international market movements as the reason for the October increase. Import costs for propane and butane rose to $712 per tonne from $593 in July, while shipping costs climbed to $250 per tonne from $160 over the same period. Those are the two main inputs that feed into the regulator's cylinder price formula, so on the numbers alone, the increase tracks the underlying cost of bringing LPG into the country.

This is not the first swing this year. The 12kg price had already climbed to Tk 1,940 in April, after Saudi contract prices spiked 44 percent, before settling back down to Tk 1,585 by the end of September. October's Tk 1,837 figure sits between those two extremes, evidence that the underlying cost of imported gas has been genuinely volatile through 2026, not just a one way climb.

The gap between the official price and what people actually pay

The regulator sets a price, but enforcement is a different matter. The Bangladesh LPG Distributors Association told BERC in a September 21 letter that suppliers were charging retailers Tk 1,550 to Tk 1,720 per cylinder against a prescribed wholesale rate of Tk 1,475, well before the October increase even took effect. The president of the LPG Operators Association has publicly acknowledged that consumers typically pay 30 to 40 percent above the official price, and industry sources describe an "artificial shortage," where some distributors deliberately held back stock in the weeks before the October price review, betting correctly that prices would rise.

"The High Court issued a directive on August 25, 2020, requiring BERC to determine LPG prices through public hearings," said M Shamsul Alam, energy adviser to the Consumers Association of Bangladesh, pointing out that the regulator has not held one since April 2021.

That lapse matters because public hearings are where distributors, retailers and consumer groups can challenge the regulator's cost assumptions in the open. The Consumers Association has specifically disputed BERC's shipping cost figures, presenting its own data showing rates of roughly $69 per tonne through Mongla port in an earlier dispute, far below numbers the regulator accepted from industry submissions.

What the October 29 hearing will actually decide

BERC has now scheduled a public hearing for October 29 at the BIAM Foundation in Dhaka's Eskaton area, running from 10am to 4pm, with written submissions and registration due by October 27. State owned LP Gas has proposed changes to government set prices, and several private operators have separately asked for revisions to gas costs, storage and bottling expenses, and the commissions paid to dealers and retailers, some of which have not been revisited since 2021. BERC Chairman Jalal Ahmed has said any changes to those commission structures will also go through a public hearing rather than being set administratively.

The hearing follows a tense standoff earlier in October, when the LP Gas Traders Cooperative Association called a nationwide trader shutdown for October 15 and 16, only to withdraw it after a meeting with the BERC chairman and a warning from Power Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood Tuku about possible legal action against the shutdown.

What it means for you

If you cook with LPG, the honest budgeting number right now is not the official Tk 1,837, it is closer to Tk 2,000 to Tk 2,250 if your area is short on supply, which for many households in Dhaka and beyond has become the normal experience rather than the exception. It is worth asking your regular supplier for a receipt showing the price charged, since documented overcharging complaints are part of what feeds into BERC's enforcement actions and future hearings. Households stretched by rising cooking gas costs alongside other bills may also want to revisit their monthly budget using the site's income tax calculator to check whether recent salary adjustments have kept pace, or use the EMI calculator if gas and other price increases are affecting a household loan repayment plan.

What comes next

The October 29 hearing is the first real test of whether BERC's pricing process becomes more transparent, as the 2020 High Court directive required, or stays largely administrative with occasional reviews. Consumer advocates will be watching whether the regulator's cost assumptions, particularly on shipping, hold up to scrutiny in the open, and whether a more predictable pricing formula can finally close the gap between what the law says cylinders should cost and what households are actually paying at the shop.