Consumers will have to buy Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) at a higher price as Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) has re-fixed the price of 12 KG LPG cylinder at Tk 1,439 from the existing Tk 1,391 with effect from 6 pm today.

It means a consumer has to pay an additional Tk 48 to buy a 12kg LPG container while Tk 4 per kg for other quantities of the containers.

Most consumers use the 12kg container while 18kg, 25kg containers are also available in the market.

The new price will be effective from 6 pm today (April 3, 2022), said BERC chairman Abdul Jalil while announcing the price.

According to the new price, the autogas price has been raised to Tk 67.02 per litre from Tk 63.07.

BERC chairman Abdul Jalil attributed the global price hike of Saudi CP (contract price) due to the Russia-Ukraine war and also the increase in Taka-Dollar rate.

Now each dollar's exchange rate is Tk85.25 which was earlier Tk85.07, he added.

Similarly, the importers have to pay higher amounts against a 7 percent VAT while the overall cost is higher than earlier, said the BERC chief.

He said the Saudi contract price (CP) has risen globally to $953-- from $911.25 per metric tonne.

"It is hard to predict whether the price will go up or down in the current global situation," he said.

According to industry insiders, the Saudi CP is normally announced at the end of every month to make it effective for the next month, and it takes at least 7-10 days for a shipment of the fuel to arrive in the country.

Most Bangladeshi private companies import their bulk LPG from the Middle East based on Saudi CP and market it locally.

BERC, for the first time, fixed the retail-level LPG prices on April 12 after holding a public hearing to comply with a High Court order.