LAHORE, Sept 17: The LPG Distributors Association has given a five-day ultimatum to producers and marketing companies and threatened to shut down all sale points two days before Ramazan if recent hike in gas prices is not withdrawn.

“The producers and marketing companies will be responsible for Karachi to Peshawar strike that will continue till the fulfillment of our demand,” association chairman Irfan Khokhar told a reception on Sunday.

Presenting a seven-point charter of demands, Khokhar said the producers and marketing companies were earning 100 to 150 per cent profit and the distributors were working on two to three per cent margin while the latter were being defamed for the exorbitant price-hike.

The demands include immediate withdrawal of the raise in prices, end to black marketing of the product, a clear differentiation between rates of local and imported LPG.

The association also wants that the companies which are marketing local product should be barred from charging rates for imported gas and completing all maintenance work before Ramazan so that there is no shortage of gas during the holy month.

Presently, the OGDC has shut down its gas production for maintenance. The company produces 525 metric ton LPG daily.

The distributors also want elimination of all taxes on import of LPG so that gas could be imported at zero margin for stabilising its prices in the market.

They want their profit margin fixed at 15 per cent instead of the present three percent.

They have also sought that the companies should announce a Ramazan package for consumers to provide them relief during the month by slashing prices instead of hiking them.

Mr Khokhar said that the cost of LPG producers was around Rs14,000 per metric ton while the sale rate for marketing companies was about Rs32,339 per metric ton ex-plant.

The Oil and Gas Development Corporation (OGDC) and other producers have increased prices of LPG manifold during the last five months.

The price which was Rs19,644 per metric ton ex-plant on April 15 this year was increased to Rs23,343 per metric ton the next day. It was again raised by Rs2,230 to Rs25,573 per metric ton on June 16.

Another jump in the rates came on Aug 16 when it was raised to Rs28,847, a difference of Rs3,274 while on Sept 16 (this Saturday) it was further increased to Rs32,339 per metric ton without giving any cogent reason.

Total increase in the producers’ price within the last five months comes to around Rs12,695 per metric ton or in other words an extra burden of about Rs149 per cylinder on domestic consumers.